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] ]
⚫ The '''L5 Society''' was founded in 1975 by ] and ] to promote the ] ideas of ].
⚫ ]
⚫ The '''L5 Society''' was founded in 1975 by ] and ] to promote the space colony ideas of ].


In 1987 the L5 Society merged with the ] to form the ].

==Name==
⚫ ]s in a two-body system, with one body far more massive than the other (e.g. Earth and Moon). In this system {{L3}}–{{L5}} will appear to share the secondary's orbit, although they are situated slightly outside it.]]
The name comes from the {{L4}} and {{L5}} ]s in the ]–] system proposed as locations for the huge rotating ]s that O'Neill envisioned. {{L4}} and {{L5}} are points of stable gravitational equilibrium located along the path of the moon's orbit, 60 degrees ahead or behind it. The name comes from the {{L4}} and {{L5}} ]s in the ]–] system proposed as locations for the huge rotating ]s that O'Neill envisioned. {{L4}} and {{L5}} are points of stable gravitational equilibrium located along the path of the moon's orbit, 60 degrees ahead or behind it.


An object placed in orbit around {{L5}} (or {{L4}}) will remain there indefinitely without having to expend fuel to keep its position, whereas an object placed at {{L1}}, {{L2}} or {{L3}} (all points of unstable equilibrium) may have to expend fuel if it drifts off the point. An object placed in orbit around {{L5}} (or {{L4}}) will remain there indefinitely without having to expend fuel to keep its position, whereas an object placed at {{L1}}, {{L2}} or {{L3}} (all points of unstable equilibrium) may have to expend fuel if it drifts off the point.


==History==
⚫ ] called the ], by ]]]
⚫ ===Founding of L5 Society===

⚫ ] called the ], by ].]]
⚫ ==Founding of L5 Society==
O'Neill's first published paper on the subject, "The Colonization of Space", appeared in the magazine '']'' in September 1974. A number of people who later became leaders of the {{L5}} Society got their first exposure to the idea from this article. Among these were a couple from Tucson, Arizona, ] and ]. The Hensons corresponded with O'Neill and were invited to present a paper on "Closed Ecosystems of High Agricultural Yield" at the 1975 Princeton Conference on Space Manufacturing Facilities, which was organized by O'Neill.<ref name=oneilchilds>, Reaching for the High Frontier, The American Pro-Space Movement 1972–84, by Michael A. G. Michaud, National Space Society.</ref> O'Neill's first published paper on the subject, "The Colonization of Space", appeared in the magazine '']'' in September 1974. A number of people who later became leaders of the {{L5}} Society got their first exposure to the idea from this article. Among these were a couple from Tucson, Arizona, ] and ]. The Hensons corresponded with O'Neill and were invited to present a paper on "Closed Ecosystems of High Agricultural Yield" at the 1975 Princeton Conference on Space Manufacturing Facilities, which was organized by O'Neill.<ref name=oneilchilds>, Reaching for the High Frontier, The American Pro-Space Movement 1972–84, by Michael A. G. Michaud, National Space Society.</ref>


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The Hensons incorporated the {{L5}} Society in August 1975, and sent its first 4-page newsletter in September to a sign up list from the conference and O'Neill's mailing list.<ref>Brandt-Erichsen, David. The L5 Society. "Reprinted from Ad Astra, the magazine of the National Space Society, Nov.-Dec., 1994." Ad Astra, November/December 1994. Retrieved from http://www.nss.org/settlement/L5news/L5history.htm.</ref> The first newsletter included a letter of support from ] (then a contender for US president) and said "our clearly stated long range goal will be to disband the Society in a mass meeting at {{L5}}."<ref>, L-5 News, A Newsletter from the L-5 Society, Number 1, September 1975</ref> The Hensons incorporated the {{L5}} Society in August 1975, and sent its first 4-page newsletter in September to a sign up list from the conference and O'Neill's mailing list.<ref>Brandt-Erichsen, David. The L5 Society. "Reprinted from Ad Astra, the magazine of the National Space Society, Nov.-Dec., 1994." Ad Astra, November/December 1994. Retrieved from http://www.nss.org/settlement/L5news/L5history.htm.</ref> The first newsletter included a letter of support from ] (then a contender for US president) and said "our clearly stated long range goal will be to disband the Society in a mass meeting at {{L5}}."<ref>, L-5 News, A Newsletter from the L-5 Society, Number 1, September 1975</ref>


===Moon Treaty===
⚫ ==Moon Treaty, decline of {{L5}} Society and merger with National Space Institute==
<!-- Deleted image removed: ] was not yet a reality by the time '''''2001''''' came and went (image: MGM).]] --> <!-- Deleted image removed: ] was not yet a reality by the time '''''2001''''' came and went (image: MGM).]] -->
⚫ The peak of {{L5}}'s influence was the defeat of the ] in the U.S. Senate in 1980 ("... L-5 took on the biggest political fight of its short life, and won").<ref name=oneilchilds /> Specifically, {{L5}} Society activists campaigned for awareness of the provisions against any form of sovereignty or private property in outer space that would make space colonization impossible and the provisions against any alteration of the environment of any celestial body prohibiting ]. ], a Washington lawyer/lobbyist, was instrumental in this effort.{{fact|date=January 2015}}
⚫ ]'s proposed Moon colony concept from early 2001 (image: NASA).]]
⚫ The peak of {{L5}}'s influence was the defeat of the ] in the US Senate in 1980 ("... L-5 took on the biggest political fight of its short life, and won").<ref name=oneilchilds /> Specifically, {{L5}} Society activists campaigned for awareness of the provisions against any form of sovereignty or private property in outer space that would make space colonization impossible and the provisions against any alteration of the environment of any celestial body prohibiting ]. ], a Washington lawyer/lobbyist, was instrumental in this effort.{{fact|date=January 2015}}


Although economic analysis<ref>O'Neill, Gerard K. "Space Colonies and Energy Supply to the Earth," Science 190:943–947. December 5, 1975</ref> indicated the SPS/space colony concept had merit, it foundered on short political and economic horizons and the fact that the transport cost to space was about 300 times too high for individuals to fund when compared to the ] and ].<ref>See the chapter "Pilgrims, Saints and Spacemen" in ]'s '']'' for an analysis.</ref> Although economic analysis <ref>O'Neill, Gerard K. "Space Colonies and Energy Supply to the Earth," Science 190:943–947. December 5, 1975</ref> indicated the SPS/space colony concept had merit, it foundered on short political and economic horizons and the fact that the transport cost to space was about 300 times too high for individuals to fund when compared to the ] and ].<ref>See the chapter "Pilgrims, Saints and Spacemen" in ]'s '']'' for an analysis.</ref>


⚫ ===Merger with National Space Institute===
In 1986, the Society, which had grown to about 10,000 members, merged with the 25,000 member ], founded by German rocket engineer and ] program manager ] of ]'s ] to form the present-day ].<ref></ref> In 1986, the {{L5}} Society, which had grown to about 10,000 members, merged with the 25,000 member ], to form the present-day ]. The National Space Institute had been founded in 1972 by ], the former German ] of the WW II ] ], and of ]'s ] and ] program manager. <ref></ref>


While the {{L5}} Society failed to achieve the goal of human settlements in space, it served as a ] for many of the people who later became known in fields such as ], ], ]ism, ], ], ], and ], such as ], ], and ].<ref>A journalistic account can be found in '']'' by ] (1990 – ISBN 0-201-09258-1).</ref><ref>A more scholarly treatment is the 2012 book ''The Visioneers'' by historian ].</ref> While the {{L5}} Society failed to achieve the goal of human settlements in space, it served as a ] for many of the people who later became known in fields such as ], ], ]ism, ], ], ], and ], such as ], ], and ].<ref>A journalistic account can be found in '']'' by ] (1990 – ISBN 0-201-09258-1).</ref><ref>A more scholarly treatment is the 2012 book ''The Visioneers'' by historian ].</ref>


⚫ ]'s proposed ], 2001 concept (image: NASA).]]
==L5 News== ===L5 News===
<!-- Deleted image removed: ]]] --> <!-- Deleted image removed: ]]] -->
⚫ The was the newsletter of the {{L5}} Society reporting on ] development and related space issues. The {{L5}} News was published from September 1975 until April 1987, when the merger with the National Space Institute was completed and the newly formed National Space Society began publication of its own magazine, ].

⚫ was the newsletter of the {{L5}} Society reporting on ] development and related space issues. The {{L5}} News was published from September 1975 until April 1987, when the merger with the National Space Institute was completed and the newly formed National Space Society began publication of its own magazine, ].
{{Clear}}


==See also== ==See also==
*] *]
*] *]
*{{C|Space advocacy organizations}}
*{{C|Space colonization|Space colonization topics}}


==References== ==References==
{{Reflist}} {{Reflist|26em}}


==External links== ==External links==
⚫ *
* (Moon Treaty)
* — ''online edition of ] magazine''.
*'''L5 News''' Index for , , , , ,
*
⚫ * Resources for NSS chapters, members and space activists.
* *
* *
;L5 News index:
⚫ * Official website
* Online edition of magazine :*
:*
⚫ * Resources for NSS chapters, members and space activists.
:*
:*
:*
:*




] ]
] ]
⚫ ]
]
] ]
] ]
⚫ ]
] ]
] ]
]
] ]
]

Revision as of 08:55, 30 August 2016

The original L5 Society logo.

The L5 Society was founded in 1975 by Carolyn Meinel and Keith Henson to promote the space colony ideas of Gerard K. O'Neill.

In 1987 the L5 Society merged with the National Space Institute to form the National Space Society.

Name

A diagram showing the five Lagrangian points in a two-body system, with one body far more massive than the other (e.g. Earth and Moon). In this system L3–L5 will appear to share the secondary's orbit, although they are situated slightly outside it.

The name comes from the L4 and L5 Lagrangian points in the Earth–Moon system proposed as locations for the huge rotating space habitats that O'Neill envisioned. L4 and L5 are points of stable gravitational equilibrium located along the path of the moon's orbit, 60 degrees ahead or behind it.

An object placed in orbit around L5 (or L4) will remain there indefinitely without having to expend fuel to keep its position, whereas an object placed at L1, L2 or L3 (all points of unstable equilibrium) may have to expend fuel if it drifts off the point.

History

Founding of L5 Society

Artist's conception of a space habitat called the Stanford torus, by Don Davis.

O'Neill's first published paper on the subject, "The Colonization of Space", appeared in the magazine Physics Today in September 1974. A number of people who later became leaders of the L5 Society got their first exposure to the idea from this article. Among these were a couple from Tucson, Arizona, Carolyn Meinel and Keith Henson. The Hensons corresponded with O'Neill and were invited to present a paper on "Closed Ecosystems of High Agricultural Yield" at the 1975 Princeton Conference on Space Manufacturing Facilities, which was organized by O'Neill.

At this conference, O'Neill merged the Solar Power Satellite (SPS) ideas of Peter Glaser with his space habitat concepts.

The Hensons incorporated the L5 Society in August 1975, and sent its first 4-page newsletter in September to a sign up list from the conference and O'Neill's mailing list. The first newsletter included a letter of support from Morris Udall (then a contender for US president) and said "our clearly stated long range goal will be to disband the Society in a mass meeting at L5."

Moon Treaty

The peak of L5's influence was the defeat of the Moon Treaty in the U.S. Senate in 1980 ("... L-5 took on the biggest political fight of its short life, and won"). Specifically, L5 Society activists campaigned for awareness of the provisions against any form of sovereignty or private property in outer space that would make space colonization impossible and the provisions against any alteration of the environment of any celestial body prohibiting terraforming. Leigh Ratiner, a Washington lawyer/lobbyist, was instrumental in this effort.

Although economic analysis indicated the SPS/space colony concept had merit, it foundered on short political and economic horizons and the fact that the transport cost to space was about 300 times too high for individuals to fund when compared to the Plymouth Rock and Mormon colonies.

Merger with National Space Institute

In 1986, the L5 Society, which had grown to about 10,000 members, merged with the 25,000 member National Space Institute, to form the present-day National Space Society. The National Space Institute had been founded in 1972 by Wernher von Braun, the former German rocket engineer of the WW II Nazi V-2 rocket/ballistic missile program, and of NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and Project Apollo program manager.

While the L5 Society failed to achieve the goal of human settlements in space, it served as a focal point for many of the people who later became known in fields such as nanotechnology, memetics, extropianism, cryonics, transhumanism, artificial intelligence, and tether propulsion, such as K. Eric Drexler, Robert Forward, and Hans Moravec.

NASA's proposed Moon colony, 2001 concept (image: NASA).

L5 News

The L5 News was the newsletter of the L5 Society reporting on space habitat development and related space issues. The L5 News was published from September 1975 until April 1987, when the merger with the National Space Institute was completed and the newly formed National Space Society began publication of its own magazine, Ad Astra.

See also

References

  1. ^ Chapter 5: O'Neills Children, Reaching for the High Frontier, The American Pro-Space Movement 1972–84, by Michael A. G. Michaud, National Space Society.
  2. Pg 5, Archive for December, 1975, Space Studies Institute
  3. Brandt-Erichsen, David. The L5 Society. "Reprinted from Ad Astra, the magazine of the National Space Society, Nov.-Dec., 1994." Ad Astra, November/December 1994. Retrieved from http://www.nss.org/settlement/L5news/L5history.htm.
  4. L-5 News, 1975, L-5 News, A Newsletter from the L-5 Society, Number 1, September 1975
  5. O'Neill, Gerard K. "Space Colonies and Energy Supply to the Earth," Science 190:943–947. December 5, 1975
  6. See the chapter "Pilgrims, Saints and Spacemen" in Freeman Dyson's Disturbing the Universe for an analysis.
  7. About the National Space Society (NSS)
  8. A journalistic account can be found in Great Mambo Chicken and the Transhuman Condition by Ed Regis (1990 – ISBN 0-201-09258-1).
  9. A more scholarly treatment is the 2012 book The Visioneers by historian W. Patrick McCray.

External links

L5 News index
Categories: