All other creatures look down upon the Earth, but man was given a
face so that he might turn his eyes toward the stars, and gaze upon
the sky. - Ovid, c. 10 BC
There will certainly be no lack of human pioneers when we have
mastered the art of flight. ... Let us create vessels and sails
adjusted to the heavenly ether, and there will be plenty of people
unafraid of the empty wastes. In the meantime we shall prepare, for
the brave sky-travelers, maps of the celestial bodies. - Johannes
Kepler, 1610
A day will come when beings, now latent in our thoughts and hidden in
our loins, shall stand upon Earth as a footstool and laugh, and reach
out their hands amidst the stars. - H.G. Wells, 1902