Puerto Rico, 239, 243
pulsar, 131
Pythagorean Theorem, 238
Qian Xuesen, 141
Qi Jiguang, 24
Qualcomm Tricorder X Prize, 92
quantum entanglement, 230–32, 230
quantum genesis, 255
quantum mechanics, 258
quantum teleportation, 230–32, 230
quantum theory, 189
qubits, 230
Queloz, Didier, 126–28, 133
R-7 rocket, 37
R-16 rocket, 43
radiation, infrared, 109, 253–54, 254
radioactivity, as energy source, 124, 181
radio waves, 66, 187, 189, 242
ramjets, 222–23
RAND Corporation, 222
Rare Earth hypothesis, 241
RCS Energia, 106
RD-180 engine, 72
Reagan, Ronald, administration of, 167, 271
reality TV, 75, 171, 214, 282
“Realm of Fear,” 229
reasoning, human capacity for, 13–17, 18–19
red dwarfs, 131
Red Mars (Stanley), 174
Red Scare, 141
Redstone rocket, 36–37, 71
reindeer, 119–20
remote sensing, 175–91, 224
RepRap Project, 227
reproduction, sexual, 6, 172
Ride, Sally, 74
“Right Stuff,” as term, 71, 114
Right Stuff, The (Wolfe), 272
Ringworld series (Niven), 253
risk:
as basic to human nature, 9, 262
genetic factor in, 10–12
of living on Mars, 167–70
in pushing human limits, 120
of space tourism, 102, 105–9, 155
of space travel, 42–43, 55–56, 56, 106–9, 152–53
Robinson, Kim Stanley, 174
robonaut project, 179
robots, robotics:
as aids to humans, 249, 250
in asteroid redirection, 104
commercial, 178
ethical issues of, 179
nanotechnology in, 179–82, 181
remote control of, 177–78
remote sensing through, 176
self-assembly and self-replication by, 226–28, 258, 259
in spacecraft, 50, 100, 100
space exploration by, 53–57, 66, 98, 133, 161, 177–79, 179, 208, 224–28
see also cyborgs; nanobots
Rocketdyne, 112
rocket equation, 27, 53, 72–73, 110–11, 111, 148, 220, 268
rocket fuel, 110–13, 148, 156, 159, 161
comparison of efficiency of, 219–24
Rocket Performance Calculator, 222
rockets:
alternatives to, 148–53
“bible” of, 267
challenges in launching of, 43–44, 46–49, 106, 107, 111–12, 148
comparison of US and Soviet, 44
cost of, 112–13, 113
developing technology of, 21–39, 43, 101, 103, 112–13, 183, 262
fuel for, 110–13, 148, 156, 159, 161, 220–21
launched from planes, 84
liquid-fueled, 28–29, 29
physics and function of, 110–14
proposed energy technologies for, 220–24
reusable, 101, 103, 111, 112, 113
solar sails compared to, 183
as term, 23
visionaries in development of, 26–30, 94
in warfare, 22–24, 30, 32–34
see also specific rockets
“Rockets to the Planets in Space, The” (Oberth), 28
Rogers Commission, 271
Rohrabacher, Dana, 284
Rome, ancient, 18, 67, 163
Rovekamp, Roger, 207
rovers, 66–67, 92, 125, 140, 143, 158, 165, 167
nanotechnology in, 181–82
remote sensing through, 176
Rozier, Jean-François de, 68
RP-1 kerosine, 110
RS-25 rocket, 112
Russia, 23, 26–27, 149, 178
space program of, 37, 65–66, 72, 75, 84, 91, 104, 106, 107–8, 113, 114, 140, 143, 168, 184, 195, 200, 271
space tourism by, 75, 102
tensions between US and, 72
see also Soviet Union
Russian Revolution, 27, 47
Russian Space Agency, 102
Rutan, Burt, 72, 82–86, 85, 88, 88, 89, 91, 97–98, 105–6, 214
Rutan, Dick, 83–84
Rutan Aircraft Factory, 83
Saberhagen, Fred, 177, 259
Sagan, Carl, 53, 121–22, 121, 176–77, 184, 198, 234–35, 238, 240
Sahakian, Barbara, 98
Sahara Desert, 238
sails:
solar, 183–86, 185
wind-driven, 67–68, 183, 262
Salyut space station, 54, 108
satellites:
artificial Earth, 36–39, 37, 40, 65, 71, 106
commercial, 96, 105
communications, 101, 142, 153
in energy capture, 253
geostationary, 149
GPS, 144
launching of, 154, 154
miniature, 90, 184–85
Saturn:
moon of, 125, 227
probes to, 52–53
as uninhabitable, 125
Saturn V rocket, 43, 44, 46, 54, 83, 104, 111, 113, 113, 166
Scaled Composites, 83, 89
science fiction, 192, 196, 222, 223, 239, 250, 253
aliens in, 186–87
in film, 28, 204
Mars in, 164, 174
roots of, 20
technologies of, 228–32, 259
see also specific authors and works
scientific method, 213
Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), 187–90, 234, 239, 254
evolution and technology of, 237–39, 242–43, 242
lack of signals detected by, 236–37, 240–44
new paradigms for, 258
“Searching for Interstellar Communications” (Cocconi and Morrison), 187
sea travel:
early human migration through, 8, 9
exploration by, 109, 262
propulsion in, 67–68
self-replication, 226–28, 258, 259
Senate, US, Armed Services Preparedness Committee of, 39
SETI Institute, 188
78–6 (pig), 250
sex:
promiscuous, 12
in reproduction, 6, 172
in space, 200, 214
Shackleton Energy Company, 161
Shane, Scott, 98
Shatner, William, 88–89
Shelley, Mary, 206
Shenlong (“Divine Dragon”), 145
Shenzhou 10, 142–43
Shepard, Alan, 41, 84
Shostak, Seth, 243
Siberia, 65, 119–20, 238
population dispersion into, 8, 118, 218
Sidereal Messenger, The (Galileo), 270
Siemienowicz, Kazimierz, 267
Simonyi, Charles, 75
Sims, 175
simulation:
infinite regression in, 261
living in, 257–62
simulation hypothesis, 261
Sinatra, Frank, 45
singularity, 207
in origin of cosmos, 255
and simulation, 257–62
technological, 258–59
Singularity University, 94, 259
Skylab space station, 54, 116
Skype video, 176
smart motes, 181, 225
smartphones, 92, 185
Smithsonian Institution, 30, 81
Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, 85, 91, 271
Snow Crash (Stephenson), 103
Snowden, Edward, 178
social media, 195
Sojourner rover, 165
Sol
arCity, 96–97
solar flares, 167
solar power, 96, 181, 183–86
solar sails, solar sailing, 183–86, 185, 223, 225, 227
Solar System:
discovery of first planet beyond, 126–27
edge of, 50, 53, 121
formation of, 156
habitability potential in, 122, 124–26
latency variations in, 178
probes into, 51–52, 66, 177, 185–86, 208, 270
projected travel within, 248–49, 263
property rights in, 145–47, 198
worlds beyond, 126–29, 156, 208, 215, 250, 263
solar wind, 162, 223
sound barrier, breaking of, 69, 71
South America, 11, 202, 218
Soviet Union, 30, 34, 37, 141
fall of, 47, 65, 75, 197, 271–72
rocket development in, 35–39
space program failures and losses of, 43, 47, 50–51, 54, 269
space program of, 37–39, 40–43, 141, 149, 237, 271
Soyuz spacecraft, 43, 55, 75, 84, 91, 102, 106, 113, 143
crash of, 107–8
space:
civilians in, 55, 74
civilian vs. military control of, 37–39, 69–71, 79, 153
commercialization of, 55, 63, 73–76, 79–80, 88–89, 92, 97, 99–109, 100, 110, 147, 153–56, 154, 199, 214, 249, 275
debris in, 144, 152
first American in, 41
first man in, 40–41, 41
first women in, 40, 74
as infinite, 18, 19, 22
as inhospitable to human beings, 53–54, 114–17, 121
legislation on, 39, 78, 90, 144, 145–47, 198–200
living in, 192–208
“living off the land” in, 166, 200
peaceful exploration of, 39
potential for human habitabilty in, 123
prototype for sealed ecosystem in, 192–97
Space Act (1958), 39, 90
Space Adventures, 102, 275
space colonization:
challenges of, 197–201
cyborgs in, 204–8
evolutionary diversion in, 201–4
legal issues in, 198–200
of Mars, 166–71, 169, 192, 195, 203
off-Earth human beings in, 215, 250–51
prototype experiments for, 192–97
space elevators, 27, 148–53, 150, 160–61, 185, 280
“Space Exploration via Telepresence,” 178
Spaceflight Society, 28
space hotels, 102–3
Space Launch System (SLS), 104
space mining, 155–56, 161–62
“Space Oddity,” 142
spaceplanes, 71–72, 85, 144
Spaceport America, 1–6, 105
Space Race, 35–39, 37, 40–43, 50, 55, 139
SpaceShipOne, 72, 85, 85, 88–89, 88, 91
SpaceShipTwo, 88, 101, 105
Space Shuttle, 45, 46, 49, 64, 72, 84, 85, 111–13, 112, 159, 167, 194, 219–20, 222, 275
disasters of, 55–56, 56, 74–75, 107, 111–13
final flight of, 271
limitations of, 55–56, 64–65
as reusable vehicle, 54–55
space sickness, 114
spacesuits, 89, 182, 195–96
space-time, 255, 255
manipulation of, 258
space tourism, 63, 73, 75–76, 79–80, 88–89, 91, 101–3, 154, 170, 214
celebrities in, 88, 101–2
revenue from, 154–55, 155
risks of, 102, 105–9, 155
rules for, 105
space travel:
beyond Solar System, see interstellar travel
bureaucracy of, 105–10, 271
cost of, 39, 42, 45, 49, 54, 55, 66, 75, 81–82, 91, 112–14, 113, 139–49, 153, 155–56, 158–59, 161, 166, 179, 183, 198, 214, 217, 222, 224–26, 252, 270, 275, 284
early attempts at, 21–22, 22
effect of rocket equation in, see rocket equation
entrepreneurs of, 81–98
erroneous predictions about, 214
failures and disasters in, 21–22, 22, 38, 43, 47, 50–51, 54–56, 56, 63–64, 68, 72, 74–75, 101, 102, 107, 142, 184, 269, 271, 275
fatality rate of, 107–9
fictional vignettes of, 1–4, 59–62, 135–38, 209–12
Internet compared to, 76–80, 77, 80
life extension for, 250–51
lifetimes lived in, 251
living conditions in, 114–17
new business model for, 99–105
Newton’s theories as basis of, 25
obstacles to, 21, 63, 66–67, 105–109
space travel (continued)
as part of simulation, 261–62
public engagement in, 45, 73, 85, 93, 162, 177, 217
remote sensing vs., 175–91
risks of, 43–44, 83, 89, 93, 105–9
speculation on future of, 76–80, 133, 213–32, 248–52
suborbital, 84
telescopic observation vs., 49–50
visionaries of, 26–39, 80, 94, 109
SpaceX, 96, 97, 100–103, 113–14, 275
SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, 96, 100, 100, 102, 170
special theory of relativity, 228, 231
specific impulse, 220
spectroscopy, 127, 165, 176
spectrum analyzer, 237
Speer, Albert, 34
Spielberg, Steven, 238
Spirit of St. Louis (airplane), 91
Spirit of St. Louis, The (Lindbergh), 90
Spirit rover, 165
Sputnik 1, 37–39, 37, 40, 41, 51, 65, 141, 269
Sputnik 2, 47, 269
Sputnik 3, 39, 269
SR-71 “Blackbird,” 69
Stafford, Tom, 55
Stalin, Joseph, 35, 37, 253
Stapledon, Olaf, 253
Stapp, John, 46
Stark, Tony (Iron Man), 95, 96, 205
stars:
ancient Greek concept of, 18
as basis of carbon, 256
in exoplanet detection, 126–28, 129, 130–31
Sun-like, 131, 133, 187, 215, 233, 236
Star Trek, 88, 90, 92, 167, 192, 228–29, 268
Star Trek: The Next Generation, 229, 232
Stephenson, Neal, 103
Stevenson, Robert, 114
Stone, Bill, 97–98, 161
string theory, 257
Student, The, 86
Sub-Biosphere 2, 197
Sun:
ancient Greek concept of, 18
demise of, 197, 286
as energy source, 124, 223, 253
formation of, 156
stars that are similar to, 131, 133, 187, 215, 233, 236
Sunjammer, 185, 284
Survivor (TV series), 75
suspended animation, 250–52
Synergia Ranch, 192
tachyons, 228
taikonauts, 142–43
tardigrades (water bears), 122
Tarter, Jill, 242–43
Tau Ceti, 187–88, 237
Teacher in Space program, 55, 74
technological maturity, 260–61
technology:
advancements in, 127, 133, 159–60, 224, 231, 241, 250, 257–62, 288, 292
alien, 186–91
in cameras, 53
computation, 258–62
destructive potential of, 245–46
development of, 20
for efficient energy production, 220–24, 221
erroneous predictions about, 213–14
in foods, 115–16
human beings surpassed by, 258–59
Kardashev’s scale for, 253–54
outdated, 64–65, 106
of remote sensing, 175–91
of spacesuits, 195–96
speculative and hypothetical, 228–32
&
nbsp; trust in, 98
in weaponry, 22–24
see also nanotechnology; specific technologies
TED2014 conference, 178
telepathy, cybernetic, 206
teleportation, 228–32, 230, 252
telepresence, 176–79, 283
telerobotics, 177–78
telescopes, 31, 49–50, 126, 128, 129–30, 158, 163, 187, 190, 218, 235, 292–93
see also specific instruments
Telstar, 153
Tereshkova, Valentina, 74
Terminator, The, 259
terraforming, 172–74, 182, 216–17, 227
terrestrial exoplanets, incidence of, 128, 129, 216, 241
terrorism, 152–53
Tesla, Nikola, 237
Tesla Motors, 96–97, 97
test pilots, 71–74, 272
Tethers Unlimited, 226
Thales, 18–19
“There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom” (Feynman), 180
thought experiments:
and birth of science, 19
for Dyson sphere, 253–54
of Newton, 25
on self-replication, 226–27
3-D fabrication, 159, 160, 226–27, 226
thrust, in flight, 68–69, 72, 186, 220, 222–23
thymine, 6
Timbisha tribe, 118–19
Titan, 53, 125, 177, 182, 278
Tito, Dennis, 75, 170
Toba supervolcano, 202
toilets, in space travel, 116–17
Tokyo Broadcasting System, 75
tortoises, in space research, 49
Tower of Babel, 148
“Tranquility” (toilet), 117
transhumanism, 207–8
transit method, exoplanet detection by, 128–29, 128, 129, 130–31
“Transmission of Information by Extraterrestrial Civilizations” (Kardashev), 253
transporter devices, 228–32
TrES-2B (exoplanet), 132
tricorder devices, 92
Tristan da Cunha, 202–3
“True Story, A” (Lucian of Samosata), 20
Truman, Harry, 36
Tsiolkovsky, Konstantin Eduardovich, 26–28, 36, 72, 110, 149, 268
rocket equation of, see rocket equation
Turing, Alan, 258–59
twin research studies, 98
Tziolas, Andreas, 224
UFOs, 142
belief in, 102, 238
proported sightings of, 239, 240
Ulam, Stanislaw, 221
uncertainty principle, 229–30, 291
United Arab Emirates (UAE), 106
United Nations, 47, 141, 145, 147, 214
General Assembly, 42
Moon Treaty of, 279
United States, 141
bureaucracy of, 105–9
China’s relations with, 144
energy consumption of, 222
founding of, 109
government shutdown of 2013 in, 63–64
rocket development in, 28–30, 35–39
space policy debate in, 146–47
space program of, 38, 40–45, 47, 50, 51, 55–56, 56, 63–64, 72, 74–75, 107, 140–141, 140, 154, 184, 195, 296, 271; see also National Aeronautics and Space Administration
in World War II, 34