space age

See also: Space Age

English

Alternative forms

• Space Age

Etymology

Compound of space +‎ age.

Noun

space age (plural space ages)

1. The period from the about the time of the launch of Sputnik in 1957 to the present day, during which people ventured into space.

   Coordinate term: Jet Age

   • 1977 June 9, George McGovern, “The Information Age”, in The New York Times‎^[1], →ISSN:

     Just as we were beginning to feel comfortable about living in the space age, bold headlines in an I.B.M. advertisement told us “there's growing agreement that” we now are in the information age.

   • 1985, Peter Brigg, J.G. Ballard‎^[2], page 25:

     There are six other Ballard stories and a fragment that deal with space in the early stories, but most of them confirm Ballard's own opinion that the space age is over in the public imagination.

   • 2006, Gerard J. De Groot, Dark Side of the Moon: The Magnificent Madness of the American Lunar Quest‎^[3], page 259:

     When the space age ended, the alien age began. In the early 1990s, the Disney Corporation decided to close down its Mission to Mars ride

   • 2011 July 21, “Good-bye to the Space Age?”, in New York Magazine:

     But for now, it's hard not to feel like the space age is over. It never really looked anything like the Jetsons promised.

Translations

current historical period which started with the launch of the Sputnik

• Arabic: عَصْر اَلْفَضَاء m (ʕaṣr al-faḍāʔ)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 太空時代 / 太空时代 (tàikòng shídài)

• Dutch: ruimtevaarttijdperk n
• Estonian: kosmoseajastu
• Finnish: avaruusaikakausi, avaruusaika (fi)
• French: ère spatiale f
• German: Weltraumzeitalter n
• Hungarian: űrkorszak (hu)
• Japanese: 宇宙時代 (うちゅうじだい, uchū jidai)
• Portuguese: era espacial f
• Russian: косми́ческая э́ра f (kosmíčeskaja éra), косми́ческий век m (kosmíčeskij vek)
• Spanish: era espacial f
• Swedish: rymdålder c

Adjective

space age (comparative more space age, superlative most space age)

1. Redolent of the space age; appearing futuristic or modern.
   • 2001, Frank A. Salamone, Popular culture in the fifties‎^[4], page 142:

     A nation on the move needed a space age motif to express its enthusiasm.

   • 2001 November 11, “Smooth operator”, in Las Vegas Review-Journal:

     With its retro 1950s image of Space Age design, Maloof hopes his hotel-casino will become the city's latest hot spot

   • 2003, Herbert Aron David, Haikady Navada Nagaraja, Order Statistics, 3rd edition, Wiley Interscience, page 3:

     Finally, we may point to a rather narrower but truly space-age application.

   • 2012 January 9, “Dodge Dart returns at Detroit Auto Show, 36 years after...”, in Christian Science Monitor:

     The Dodge Dart has long held a place in automotive lore for its sleek, space-age design and 16-year run as Chrysler's ultimate compact car, ending in 1976.