Outposts on the frontier : a fifty-year history of space stations / Jay Chladek ; foreword by Clayton C. Anderson.

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest man-made structure to orbit Earth and has been conducting research for close to a decade and a half. Yet it is only the latest in a long line of space stations and laboratories that have flown in orbit since the early 1970s. The histories of these earlier programs have been all but forgotten as the public focused on other, higher-profile adventures such as the Apollo moon landings.



A vast trove of stories filled with excitement, danger, humor, sadness, failure, and success, Outposts on the Frontier reveals how the Soviets and the Americans combined strengths to build space stations over the past fifty years. At the heart of these scientific advances are people of both greatness and modesty. Jay Chladek documents the historical tapestry of the people, the early attempts at space station programs, and how astronauts and engineers have contributed to and shaped the ISS in surprising ways. Outposts on the Frontier delves into the intriguing stories behind the USAF Manned Orbiting Laboratory, the Almaz and Salyut programs, Skylab , the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project, Spacelab, Mir station, Spacehab, and the ISS and gives past-due attention to Vladimir Chelomei, the Russian designer whose influence in space station development is as significant as Sergei Korolev's in rocketry.



Outposts on the Frontier is an informative and dynamic history of humankind's first outposts on the frontier of space.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Booklist Review

Living and working in space was an sf dream until just a short 50 years ago. Now spaceflight historian Chladek has written a comprehensive history of Earth-orbiting space laboratories and stations, highlighting key people and events that fulfilled those dreams. Chladek details each project's mission, crew, and significance, all supported by many illustrations and photographs. The first stations were conceived as little more than orbiting spy platforms for the U.S. and Soviet Russia, but those never made it to the operational stage. The Soviets saw a permanently staffed station as necessary for space travel and created the first orbiting way station. The U.S. went directly to the moon and only afterward returned to building its own space station, Skylab, which launched in 1973. Cooperation between NASA and its Soviet counterparts began in 1974 and continues until today on the International Space Station, despite otherwise rocky politics. Chladek expertly brings to life the stunning successes and tragic failures of space exploration in this worthy addition to science, history, and space collections.--Kaplan, Dan Copyright 2018 Booklist