Capsules or wings?

During the 1950s, it was recognized that the most efficient method of conducting flights in space was by means of rocket power. What was less clear was the design of the vehicle that would be lifted into space carrying a crew. There were two main schools of thought. One considered using converted intercontinental ballistic missiles with sufficient power to lift a small pressurized compartment into orbit. The other advocated rocket-powered aircraft, which could either be air-launched from a carrier aircraft flying in the higher reaches of the atmosphere or rocket – launched from a launchpad. Once the missions had been completed, either system would need to be able to return to Earth and here again the two systems would differ.

The pressurized compartments, usually referred to as “capsules”, could descend using retro-rockets and an ablative covering, protecting the structure of the vehicle (and its precious human cargo) from incineration during entry. They could then deploy a series of parachutes to affect a softer landing either on land or water. These types of spacecraft would be single use and relatively small, to ensure that the capabilities of the parachutes were not compromised. In the case of water recovery from the ocean, they would require a fleet of naval craft to support the retrieval of crew and hardware.

The rocket-powered aircraft would have the capability of landing on a runway, which offered a more cost-effective method of recovery. It would also be possible to reuse the same vehicle after a period of turnaround. Both methods would be developed to pioneer the first decade of human space exploration.