Space economy - notes from lecture about origins and structure

Space activity started as a government effort. It was driven by competition, mainly between the USSR and the USA. Key early milestones: 1957 &#x2013; first satellite, first signal from space 1957 &#x2013; Laika, first animal in orbit 1961 &#x2013; Gagarin, first human in space 1961 &#x2013; Shepard, first American in