The Soviet Union beat the US to this, with the October 4, 1957 orbiting of Sputnik 1, and later beat the US to the first human in space, Yuri Gagarin, on April 12, 1961. The race peaked with the July 20, 1969 US landing of the first humans on the Moon with Apollo 11.
The definition of a luminary is an object giving off light, or a personality that is well known or enlightening to mankind. An example of a luminary is a candle.
A Luddite is a person who dislikes technology, especially technological devices that threaten existing jobs or interfere with personal privacy. 2. A Luddite is someone who is incompetent when using new technology. The word Luddite has an interesting origin in pop culture of the early 1800's. Legend has it that a young man name Ned Ludd broke an expensive knitting machine in Nottingham, England. Because Ned was considered to be feeble-minded by his boss, he wasn't held financially responsible for the broken equipment.