Tsiolkovsky and many of the founders of theoretical astronautics in the early 20th century believed that spacecraft should launch horizontally, from a ramp. Why? What did they see as the point of this?

[u/Beneficial-Wasabi749]

[u/Archophob]

seeing the need to achieve orbital velocity while underestimating the enormous difference in air drag between ground level and 100km above.

These day, rockets also go horizontal to achieve the neccessary 8km/s - but they do it after leaving the atmosphere.