Winter 2019

The New Landscape in Space

Fifty Earth years have elapsed since Neil Armstrong became the first person to tread on the lunar surface. Today, space is not the final frontier it used to be, but an evolving landscape where security, technology, commerce, and human ambition cross paths and collide.

in this issue:

The Battlefield 22,000 Miles above Earth

– Christian Davenport

The U.S. military’s vital space assets are an Achilles heel in orbit that China and Russia are working to exploit. Whether or not a Space Force comes into being, the Pentagon is faced with a real and growing threat.

ISS, Inc: Is the Space Station Business Ready for Liftoff?

– Tim Fernholz

The cost of operating the International Space Station, humanity’s football-field-sized laboratory 254 miles up, is beginning to conflict with President Trump’s Moon and Mars plans. Is commercializing the ISS the answer – and can it be done?

The Rocket Woman and the Smallsat Invasion

– Sarah Scoles

The Pentagon is eyeing a shift away from behemoth, bank-breaking satellites toward constellations of small, expendable ones. They will all need a way to get to orbit, though, and this rocker turned rocket scientist believes she has the solution.

The Spacesuit-Time Continuum

– The Wilson Quarterly

From the style factor of silver coating to the quest for the perfect glove, and from John Glenn’s pressure suit to the space garments of tomorrow, take this timeline tour of treasures from the U.S. national collection.