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Article: Rockets. (development of the V-2 rocket by Germany during World War II led to the development of rockets and US space exploration program)(2000: The Power of Invention: How We Fight)(Brief Article)
- Article from:
- Newsweek
- Article date:
- December 22, 1997
- Author:
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The engines that put astronauts into space today spring from tile German V-2s that bombed London during World war II.
THE BEST-KNOWN EQUATION of the 20th century is E = me2, Einstein s statement linking energy, matter and the speed of light. But another formulaV= c Loge Mi/Mf-has had at least as much impact on modem life. That's the equation relating the speed of a rocket to its other key characteristics: its weight and the efficiency of its motor. if you can get V up to 15,000 miles per hour, you can hold a missile in suborbital flight long enough to hit a city halfway round the world. Get V up to 17,000 mph, and you can put a satellite into orbit. And if V goes ...