Demarcations in the void: early satellites and the making of outer space

Abstract: "During the early Cold War, outer space became a politically contested space, and changes in its spatial perception were related to political and ideological controversies. The article highlights the specific relevance of Euclidean geometry in representations of outer space. Focusing on illustrations and expositions in both postwar German States, it argues that shifts within the spatial imagination and representation of space corresponded with the first satellite missions and condensed debates about the future of technology and the moral legacies of the Second World War. In October 1957, Sputnik I, the first artificial satellite to orbit the Earth and a Soviet construction, urged engineers, scientists, and illustrators to find new ways of depicting and communicating the spaces of outer space to the public and to each other. For decades, space fiction had implicitly stifled theories on the relativity of space and time by hinting at traditional motifs of conquest through machines. Ea

Object Details

• Alternative title: Grenzziehungen in der Leere: die ersten Satelliten und die Generierung eines Außenraums
• Location: Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Frankfurt am Main
• Extent: Online-Ressource
• Language: Englisch

References and Relationships

• Bibliographic citation: Demarcations in the void: early satellites and the making of outer space ; volume:40 ; number:1 ; year:2015 ; pages:239-264 ; Veröffentlichungsversion ; begutachtet (peer reviewed) ; Historical social research ; 40, Heft 1 (2015), 239-264

Classification and Topics

• Classification: Geschichte ; Naturwissenschaften

Contributors, Places and Time

• Creator: Brandau, Daniel

Further information

• DOI: 10.12759/hsr.40.2015.1.239-264
• URN: urn:nbn:de:0168-ssoar-419500
• Rights: Open Access; Open Access; Der Zugriff auf das Objekt ist unbeschränkt möglich.
• Last update: 14.08.2025, 10:45 AM CEST