Invention of the Year! (almost)

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) was just named #3 on Time’s list of inventions of the year for 2008!  http://tinyurl.com/5t6ok9  Congratulations LRO!

However, I don’t know about you, but my reaction to that was “is a spacecraft really an invention?”

As a result, I’ve been looking around for a definition of an invention that I like.  The best one I’ve found so far is “a product of the imagination.”  I like the simplicity of the definition, and yet somehow, it still captures the excitement and creativity that I like to associate to an invention.

So is a spacecraft an invention?  Is it a product of the imagination?  Why not?  I mean, there was a time, not so long ago, when getting anything into orbit was only a product of someone’s imagination.  Now granted, while a spacecraft cannot generically be considered an invention any longer, for the most part, at Goddard each individual spacecraft that we build is generally a unique combination of systems, designed to carry out a unique set of tasks.  LRO definitely falls into this category: a unique solution with a unique purpose, created through the imagination of scientists, engineers, and politicians.

What do you think?