Space research and exploration are commonly considered the special province of the superpowers. The considerable financial resources and still greater technological capabilities required for programs of manned space flight and planetary investigation are widely assumed to be prerequisites for space research activity of any character. In fact, however, space research is richly varied, in objective and method as well as in material and financial requirements. Thus, it is possible for lesser powers and certain of the developing countries to participate in this newest area of human activity. The values to be achieved are not only scientific and technical but also political and economic. Tangible contributions can be made both to the domestic interests of such countries find to the space programs of major powers. The opportunities implicit in these facts were early recognized by the Latin American countries, particularly Argentina, Brazil, and Mexico, and all are engaged in interesting, stimulating, and productive space activities.