After thousands of years spent staring up at the night sky, humanity rapidly gained the ability to not only travel to space, but land on the moon and live for months aboard the International Space Station. The period—kickstarted by the Cold War—is one of the quickest and most significant eras of technological innovation in human history. Explore the history and future of human spaceflight, from the first Russian cosmonaut to the possibility of sending humans to Mars in the coming decades.
Hours of research by our editors, distilled into minutes of clarity.
You’re stranded hundreds of miles away from your friends and family, constantly surrounded by coworkers who also are your roommates, and you’re only allowed the shortest of walks outside. There’s also no takeout, and gravity has essentially broken up with you. You might need a little help adjusting mentally. That’s where space psychologists and psychiatrists step in, according to this article.
Hundreds of people (and a few animals) have been to space since the first creatures flew past the Kármán line in 1947. There are a handful of astronauts aboard the International Space Station at any time, while others may be cresting space in...
Mix motion sickness minus gravity with a host of other variables, and you’ve got a recipe for space adaptation syndrome. It can hit anyone, even astronauts who escaped the issue previously. This article details the history and science behind space sickness.
Reproduction is a basic human function, and while we've spent decades in space, no research has been done into the process. With many discussing the possibility of human-occupied bases on the moon, Mars, and more, understanding how sex works outside...
Rather than competitors, SpaceX and NASA are mutually beneficial collaborators. Without NASA contracts, SpaceX may have run out of funding, and without the low-cost tech of SpaceX, NASA may have been left without a US-based launch system.
The attempts with Falcon 1 endangered the company's future but provided valuable information from which to iterate and follow up with the successful first privately funded orbital launch in history and multiple ISS resupply missions.
The company simplified manufacturing and revolutionized space travel by focusing on in-house production and reusability. Their Falcon 9 rocket's ability to land vertically and be partially reused led to 91 successful launches in 2023.
The space shuttle program was initiated by President Richard Nixon in 1972, and its first launch into space came in 1981. At the time, the spaceplane was the world's most complex aircraft, featuring the most sophisticated heat shield in history. The project sought to create a permanent human presence in space for the first time. This series explores everything related to the space shuttle.
Spacesuits have come a long way since cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin's orange jumpsuit used in the world's first entry into space in 1960. The iconic outfit is a crucial feature of all space exploration, ensuring humans are protected during launch, spacewalks, re-entry, and more. From innovations in thermal wear to the incremental changes to space helmets, dive into spacesuit history here.
Over 600 people have been in space since the space race took off decades ago, with roughly 10 in space at any given time, typically operating the world's growing number of space stations. This fun, simple tracker keeps up on who is in space right now and provides links to each space traveler's profile.
From roughly 60 miles above the Earth's surface to farther than light has traveled during the entire age of the universe, space has captured human imagination for millennia. Explore the final frontier with the best resources curated from across the internet.