Goodbye Space Shuttle

The Space Shuttle Atlantis took off yesterday for the last time. Never again will humans be taken into space by those ships. I won't say "good riddance" because the Shuttles have contributed to countless discoveries over the last few decades. But I am glad to see the back of them.

The Cold War-era space race was driven by competition between the USA and USSR. Each wanted to show that they could outmatch the other's technology, because mastery of space meant mastery in the event of a nuclear war. A rocket that could take men into orbit could easily bring nuclear weapons crashing down on cities.

Then, suddenly, the Soviets simply gave up the fight. They made no attempts to get men to Mars or establish a base on the Moon. The Americans relaxed and the future of space exploration was held back for decades. No human has set foot on another world since 1972.

But another space race has been gearing up, largely behind the scenes. This time between private companies. As happened with aeroplanes in the postwar period, competition may be able to drive down costs significantly, especially with new and more efficient rockets. I strongly doubt space flight will be affordable for normal people until an orbital elevator is constructed, but we might at least be able to see government-owned bases spring up on the Moon this side of 2030 and space hotels in orbit for the rich and famous before 2020.