After thousands of years of speculation from earth of what space was like, the last century has brought some answers and even more questions.  I really appreciated the context professor Vesna gave on the history of the solar system and the recent space age.

Although space has been at the center of human imagination for millenniums, it has never been more prevalent than it is now.  This is evident by the massive amount of spending that was poured into the nuclear and space races by the USSR and USA as discussed in professor Vesna’s lecture.  The vast unknowns of deep space inspired leaders to reach out to the final frontier and search for what life and possibilities exist beyond our current understandings. 

Along with the money poured into the space race, the possibilities of space also inspire art and social culture.  Billions of dollars are poured into cinema each year, and every year there are new movies about space and alien life that grab our attention and take the viewer on an adventure.  From my childhood until now I have been gripped by the television and movie storylines of space, from Space Jam and the Jetsons, to Wall E, Avatar and Interstellar.  The unknown often drives human interest and art and space has plenty of unknown to offer the imagination.

Observations by astronomers such as Copernicus and Galileo 15^th-17^th centuries helped drive a movement to the space age that has arrived in the 20^th and 21^st centuries. "Astrological beliefs in correspondences between celestial observations and terrestrial events have influenced various aspects of human history, including world-views, language and many elements of social culture."

Among Indo-European peoples, astrology has been dated to the 3rd millennium BC, with roots in calendric systems used to predict seasonal shifts and to interpret celestial cycles as signs of divine communications. Space has greatly influenced science and art with its vast unpredictability and inspires the imagination.

Resources:
"History of Astrology." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Web. 31 May 2015.

"Imagining the Universe: Cosmology in Art and Science." - Stanford News. Web. 31 May 2015.

"Space intro." YouTube. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 May. 2015. Lecture Video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=26&v=zzN08A6UBoo

"Astronomy Picture of the Day." APOD: 2009 October 11. Web. 31 May 2015.

"The Fluid Dynamics of “The Starry Night”: How Vincent Van Gogh’s Masterpiece Explains the Scientific Mysteries of Movement and Light." Brain Pickings RSS. Web. 31 May 2015.