logo
episode-header-image
Dec 2023
59m 28s

Space Policy Edition: Was the Space Shut...

The Planetary Society
About this episode

Was the Space Shuttle a successful program? In many ways, yes: it endured for thirty years, launched hundreds of astronauts into space, and built the International Space Station. But, according to the goals of lower costs, rapid reusability, and reliability NASA stated at its conception, the Space Shuttle program was a failure. In this new recurring feature on SPE, Jack and Casey read through a classic paper in space policy and discuss its arguments, its conclusions, and whether the paper stands up to this day.

Read along with us and suggest future episodes in our Planetary Society online member community.

Discover more at: https://www.planetary.org/planetary-radio/space-shuttle-policy-failure

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Up next
Aug 20
Silicate clouds and a dusty ring: JWST looks at YSES-1
In 2020, the YSES-1 system became the first directly imaged multiplanetary system around a Sun-like star. It features two giant exoplanets orbiting a star just 16 million years old. Now, the James Webb Space Telescope is revealing new insights into these distant worlds. Host Sara ... Show More
59m 45s
Aug 15
Book Club Edition: Exploring the Overview Effect with Frank White
Author Frank White has interviewed well over 100 astronauts. Almost all of them report the sense of awe they experienced as they looked down or back at Earth, and how deeply this has affected their understanding and appreciation of our planet and the Cosmos. It’s what author Fran ... Show More
1h 3m
Aug 13
A “Star Trek” future: Your place in space
What do “Star Trek,” space advocacy, and the fight to save NASA science have in common? In this episode of Planetary Radio, we share a special panel recorded live at STLV: Trek to Vegas 2025, featuring Robert Picardo, actor and Planetary Society board member who played the Emerge ... Show More
59m 32s
Recommended Episodes
Aug 2022
Babbage: NASA’s newish rocket
NASA’s giant new rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS), will soon embark on its maiden journey to lunar orbit. The launcher is designed to send humans back to the Moon, but was built on old technology, and is years late and shockingly over budget. Does NASA even need a successor ... Show More
42m 15s
Dec 2021
A new space age?
Dr Kevin Fong convenes a panel of astronautical minds to discuss the next decade or two of space exploration.2021 was an eventful year in space. Captain James Kirk a.k.a William Shatner popped into space for real for a couple of minutes, transported by space company Blue Origin's ... Show More
41m 56s
Feb 2022
A new space age?
In 2021, Captain James Kirk, aka William Shatner, popped into space for real for a couple of minutes, transported by space company Blue Origin's tourist rocket New Shepard. Elon Musk's Space X ferried more astronauts and supplies between Earth and the International Space Station, ... Show More
42m 5s
Apr 2023
Launching Into Space — Sustainably!
In 1957, the Space Age began with the launch of Sputnik, the first artificial satellite. Since then, the number of objects humans have hurled toward the stars has soared to the thousands. As those objects have collided with one another, they've created more space debris in Earth' ... Show More
12m 54s
Mar 2021
Can space exploration be environmentally friendly?
The space industry, with its fuel-burning rockets, requirements for mined metals and inevitable production of space junk, is not currently renowned for its environmental credentials. Can space exploration ever be truly environmentally friendly? Presenter Marnie Chesterton answers ... Show More
39m 34s
Dec 2022
The Space Shuttle
Soon after the start of the space race, a major problem with space flight became obvious: it was really expensive.The high cost of space flight was in large part due to the fact that every rocket and spacecraft was expendable. Every trip meant a new rocket and a new vehicle. To s ... Show More
15m 13s
Jul 2022
The Digitalized Future of Space Travel
Welcome to Talking Aerospace Today – a podcast for the Aerospace & Defense industry. A place that brings the promise of tomorrow’s technology to the ears of our listeners today. What if someday…we could all travel into space? Not only would space travel be more accessible to the ... Show More
41m 56s
Jan 2024
Monstrous X5 Solar Flare // X-37B Space Shuttle | S27E05
The Space News Podcast. SpaceTime Series 27 Episode 5 *Monstrous X5 solar flare launched on New Year's Eve The Sun celebrated the completion of Earth’s latest orbit by blasting out a spectacular X-5 class solar flare dwarfing even Sydney’s new year’s eve fireworks display. *X-37B ... Show More
30m 3s