[Reading Science] Why Germany's 'Rocket Engineering Genius' Chose the United States

The country with the most advanced aerospace industry in the world is undoubtedly the United States. It was the first to send humans to the moon, and with the space shuttle and the private space company SpaceX, the U.S. aerospace science and technology is unparalleled. Although Russia, China, India, and Japan have succeeded in moon landings following the U.S., the most recent case, Japan, achieved only partial success, highlighting the gap with American space science technology.

As a correspondent in New York, the most striking site I experienced was the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. At this "heart" of U.S. space launches, I witnessed firsthand the launch scenes of the Saturn rocket, which laid the foundation for moon landings, the space shuttle Atlantis, and SpaceX rockets representing modern space technology. This made me realize that core American scientific technologies such as semiconductors and computers have derived from space technology.

Where are the roots of U.S. aerospace science and technology? While it is clear that the Wright brothers, Americans, built the world’s first airplane, the achievements of U.S. space development are overwhelmingly credited to one German. Dr. Wernher von Braun. Known as the "father of rocket engineering," von Braun developed the "V2" rocket that terrified the British and Allied forces during Nazi Germany. After the Nazi defeat, the U.S. and the former Soviet Union competed to secure von Braun. His choice was the U.S. The legacy of defeated Germany went entirely to America. Von Braun was responsible for space development projects such as the Mercury and Apollo programs in the U.S. He also served as the director of NASA. Rocket science for destruction was sublimated into space technology for humanity. The victorious U.S. strengthened its national power through securing enemy talents obtained from a war won with the blood of countless young people.

Although the fruits of science are sweet, the internal research process and communication with the outside world until those fruits are borne are not easy. Science is oriented more toward the future than reality. It is an investment to enrich future life. It requires a lot of money. Scientists naturally choose countries that provide sufficient support for their research. Von Braun’s choice of the U.S. over the Soviet Union was also based on the judgment that the research environment in the U.S. was better.

In just four months, at the end of May, the Aerospace Administration, called the "Korean NASA," will be launched. Amid the backlash from the recent cuts in national research and development (R&D) budgets, the Aerospace Administration is no exception. Although the government promised exceptional treatment to secure personnel for the Aerospace Administration, the scientific community’s concerns remain ongoing about whether active support will be provided in a timely manner and whether excessive influence will be exerted afterward. The difference in perspectives between the field and policy authorities is also worrisome. "Now, if there is an urgent meeting, we have to pay for it out of pocket." This was a comment from an employee of a government-funded research institute regarding recently announced guidelines on meeting expenses. Meanwhile, the government still treats the scientific community as if they were criminals.

The morale of scientists plummeted after witnessing the controversy over Cho Sung-kyung, the 1st Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, who, immediately after a meeting of the National Assembly’s Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting Committee, used a corporate card at an expensive restaurant near his home to meet scientists who had come from the provinces.

The government is pushing to expand medical school quotas. This year again, many students who were admitted to science and engineering departments choose medical school. The reality of students who have embarked on the path of science heading to medical school is something we have created. Can we really secure "genius-level" talents like Dr. von Braun to work for Korea’s future? Or should we rather worry about the brain drain of geniuses?

Baek Jong-min, Head of the Industrial IT Department

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.