Lit Review

The future is in astrophysics. Our planet will not last forever, and if humans do not want to die out, we must further our existence into the universe. While debated by science, religion, and scientology as to when, the general populous agrees that eventually Earth will cease to exist, and to ensure human survival, we must expand our knowledge on space exploration and colonization of terrestrial planets. Sources for this project came primarily from online databases ERIC and JSTOR, as well as books from multiple libraries written by physicists, astronomers, engineers, and space scientists. Sources tend to fall along certain lines, which are basically the politics and history of space travel as well as its cultural effects, the advancement of aeronautical engineering for future missions and exploration, as well as the bio and astrophysics behind space travel.

Some sources referred to the politics of space exploration. For example, Ryan G. Faith’s “The Future Of Space,” published in a 20014 issue of World Affairs Journal. Ryan Faith shows how the “Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, Including Moon and Other Celestial Bodies” that was signed back in 1967, caused the United Nations to set the worldwide consensus on the future of exploration of our solar system, and the laws governing it. Ryan writes about this and other political issues involving the advancement of space travel. I will use this source to reverence the already mentioned treaty and other space related political acts to analyze their validity and possible future effects on terrestrial exploration. An opinion on space politics is given by astronomer Bhandari Narendra in his article “Planetary exploration: Scientific importance and future prospects,” published in an issue of Current Science in January of 2014. The astronomer explains the importance of further planetary exploration, and the ability of humans and human-made robots to explore planets in the relatively near future. References to unmanned shuttles are made in addition to show that even without the necessary technology for humans to survive, we may still explore space. I will be referencing Bhandari’s arguments when backing up my suggestion that further exploration into space is imperative. A historical account of culture affected by space travel is Gerard J. DeGroot’s Dark Side of the Moon: The Magnificent Madness of the American Lunar Quest, published by the NYU Press in 2006. This book will help me gather information about the time period when space exploration was on everyone’s mind. It will offer a unique insight to how space travel affects culture, something I plan to address in my paper. In a book by Francis French and Colin Burgess, Into That Silent Sea: Trailblazers of the Space Era, 1961-1965, published by the University of Nebraska Press in 2007. There are accounts of  historical movements towards space travel of both American and Russian advancement in the frontier, as well as the first space launch which I believe will be important to reference. Francis French and Colin Burgess also wrote another title together, In the Shadow of the Moon: A Challenging Journey to Tranquility, 1965-1969, published by the University Nebraska Press in 2007. In which it reviews previous space explorations which will be important to consider when thinking of future space exploration. Space historian Colin Burgess’ Footprints in the Dust: The Epic Voyages of Apollo, 1969-1975, published by the University of Nebraska Press in 2008 recalls Apollo, the famous shuttle in the United States and around the world. Colin Burgess is a historian who offers detail through interviews with astronauts and cosmonauts, and knowing about the famous voyages of Apollo will provide vital information about the explorers’ views throughout their missions.

While private spaceflight is not something the general public can afford, it is still something to consider because it does allow for people to go into space. Though I don’t plan on spending a huge amount of time on this subject, it will important to refer to

Space travel, like any other adventure is dangerous. While I completely support it, it would be unfair of me to not mention the negatives that have resulted from attempted space travel, and this book will help me do so. Chris Dubbs and Emeline Paat-Dahlstrom’s “Realizing Tomorrow: The Path to Private Spaceflight”, published by the University of Nebraska Press in 2011. This article discusses early education about space and the solar system. Teaching kids about space early may inspire interest and lead to future astronomers, astrophysicists, astronauts, and cosmonauts which would further our possibilities of space travel.

A major obstacle in space exploration is technological advancement, and many sources address this. For example Kumar Krishen's "Technology Needs for Future Space Exploration," published by IETE Technical Reviews in 2009. This article reviews how the goal of space exploration is to open the frontier of space. Discussed in the article are the necessities in knowledge of the natural processes of space and the necessary advancements in technology that would need to be made for human expansion into space. This article will allow me to in-vision the likelihood of making these technological advancements, and how long it would take to accomplish them. Another reference is Andrew B. Kahng, Bin Li, Li-Shiuan Peh, and Kambiz Samadi's "ORION 2.0: a fast and accurate NoC power and area model for early-stage design space exploration," published by the Conference of Design, Automation and Test in 2009. This article will give me information about the technology being worked on today for the future advancement of space travel. It’s important to consider the technology, including the possible technology as discussed in this article. Skylab is a huge feature in space exploration, as noted in David Hilt, Owen Garriott, and Joe Kerwin's Homesteading Space: The Skylab Story, published by the University of Nebraska Press in 2008. With the advancement of Skylab, humans are slowly but surely moving further out into space. Using this book, I will have the information I need about Skylab to consider its future uses in space travel. Another useful tool in learning about the technology involved in space exploration is T.S. Aurora', and Michelle Kirk's "Eye in the Sky: Science with the Hubble Space Telescope," published by Physics Education in 2014. The Hubble Space Telescope is famous for observation. This article will present it’s accomplishments, as well as describe how it is used, how it was made, and actions that have been made upon the telescope since.

Physics is the breakdown of everything in our universe. Ideally, humans will eventually be able to travel to other planets in where we may live, however not all planets are inhabitable. Malcolm Fridlund discusses the relatively new field of Comparative Planetology with a main focus on exoplanets in his "Future Space Missions To Search For Terrestrial Planets," published by Space Science Reviews in 2014. I will use this article to help me examine the ratio of known habitable planets to inhabitable planets, and the likely hood that we as a race will be able to reach them. David Greene is a well-respected physicist, and in his book, The Elegant Universe, published in 2003, he discusses superstrings, hidden dimensions, and other astrophysical processes and theories which would affect theoretical space exploration. I will use this book to dive deeper into my understand of astrophysical problems in regards to space travel which I will use in my paper when addressing the issues of space exploration. Chris Gainor and Alfred Worden's To a Distant Day, published in 2010 is the perfect book for my project. It is used by professors at the University of Nebraska in space exploration courses. It addresses the ideas of future space travel and its origins. Another useful article was Roland Lehoucq' "Illuminating the Blackbody," published by the European Journal of Physics in 2011. This article discusses the concepts of the blackbody. Being one of the baseline elements in astrophysical studies, it will be important to address and understand as to correct for error in possible travel in regards to blackbody radiation. When people think of space, they often think of the sun. D.S. Brown addresses this in their "Our Explosive Sun," published by Physics Education in 2014. While the sun allows us to survive, it causes major issues with space travel, and this article will help me address that in my paper.

In space exploration, the key role is physics, Aksel Hallin and Doug Hallman's "The Wonderous New World of Particle Astrophysics," published by Physics Teacher dives into the more specific astrophysics. If we wish to explore and colonize the universe around us, we must (at least relatively) understand it. This article will offer insight into recent progress in particle astrophysics. Gamma-Ray radiation is an important part of studying astrophysics and Michael Catanese, and Trevor C. Weekes'  article "Very High Energy Gamma Ray Astronomy" will present to me an account of the current findings on y-ray astronomy, and its effects on observatories. 

Space travel has many issues, but many more possibilities. while it may seem like science fiction right now, sooner than expected it will be a necessity for survival. There are men and women working every day to further our existence into space and maybe one day, we will have no limits.