Space travel in the US began in the 1960s. AccuWeather explores the space race throughout the decades and the future of space travel.
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00:00Welcome to AccuWeather's Ask the Experts, I'm your host Jeff Cornish.
00:15We go beyond the forecast here to give you the how and why on all of the cool and interesting
00:20things you've wondered about and wanted to ask in weather, space and science.
00:25And today we're talking about space and particularly space travel.
00:29How far we've come since the first human ventures into the space world.
00:33They began in the 1960s and a renewed interest recently regarding getting humans to the moon
00:39and beyond.
00:40So joining us now to talk more about space travel is AccuWeather astronomy expert Brian
00:45Leda.
00:46Brian, thanks so much for making time for us here today.
00:49We always love talking to you about the world of space.
00:51Yeah, I love space.
00:52You know, I'm a meteorologist by trade, but I've always had a passion for it.
00:55So thanks for having me.
00:56Well, this is good stuff.
00:57And you coordinate a lot of our space and astronomy coverage here on the AccuWeather
01:01network and also on social media, accuweather.com.
01:03You have a big love of astronomy and space and married into your meteorology background
01:10real well here for us at AccuWeather.
01:11Of course, yeah.
01:12You know, if there's a big astronomy event, you need good weather to see it.
01:14And we've had some big ones lately out there.
01:16So let's start with the evolution of space travel and how far we've come since the 1960s.
01:23So tell us a little bit about these early rocket launches and the race to space.
01:27So when you think about NASA, Jeff, one of the first things that comes to mind is landing
01:31on the moon, Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong walking on the moon, Apollo 11.
01:36And all of that was during the height of the space race.
01:38But really, the space race started in the late 1950s, and Russia took the early lead.
01:42They were the first ones to launch a satellite into space, first ones to launch a person
01:46into space, person to orbit the Earth, a woman in space.
01:49So they had almost every kind of first you could think about.
01:52So NASA was playing catch up a lot of the time.
01:55And when you compare it to today, all the technology and computers we have, they had
01:59the bare essentials, and they were creating and innovating as they went.
02:03So it's amazing the accomplishments they were able to achieve, not just to get a human to
02:07the moon, but to do it by the end of the 1960s, which, of course, the United States won the
02:12space race by landing on the moon in July of 1969.
02:16And Russia, they did have one last throw of the dice.
02:19They had a rocket that was supposed to send humans to the moon, but it had a lot of bugs
02:23with it.
02:24So right before Apollo 11 launched, they actually launched a robot to go up and scoop up a piece
02:30of lunar soil and bring it back to Earth.
02:32So at least they could lay claim to that.
02:33But it was, unfortunately for them, unsuccessful mission.
02:38So United States, you know, not just getting the first person on the moon, but bringing
02:42back the first rocks from another world.
02:44And the flag on there as well, which is really cool stuff.
02:47Well, after the moon program, NASA's focus seemed to change a little bit.
02:50So where did the focus shift away from the moon?
02:53Yeah.
02:54So when it was clear that Russia, you know, they were giving up their intentions going
02:57to the moon, and there was a lot happening, it was a Cold War, a lot happening in America,
03:02and it took a lot of money and effort for us to go to the moon at the time we did.
03:06So NASA's budget really started to get hedged back, and so we couldn't go to the moon anymore.
03:11So NASA had to pivot.
03:12And that's really when we started to see the shift from human exploration to science.
03:17And they started to focus on things like satellites and focusing on low Earth orbit and things
03:22like the start of the space shuttle program, which helped build the International Space
03:26Station, which we still use today.
03:28So really, the 1970s, after the moon program was canceled, that was a flashpoint for NASA
03:34to get us where we are today.
03:36And when we were young, it was all about the government-run NASA program as really our
03:41only hope at getting to space.
03:43But now things have shifted a little bit into the private sector.
03:46We've seen companies like SpaceX and other companies as well getting involved.
03:50So what kind of a role does NASA have today?
03:53Well, as he said, for a while there, it was just NASA, because it takes a lot of resources
03:57and a lot of money to get to space.
03:59But over the years, we've had these companies arrive.
04:02The past couple of years, SpaceX has been a huge name.
04:05Blue Origin is another rising company.
04:08United Launch Alliance has a brand new rocket.
04:10So all these different private companies are kind of making their own way in space,
04:13and it's helping out NASA, because NASA can't do it all.
04:16So while NASA trains astronauts and operates the International Space Station and has probes
04:22and rovers all across the solar system, these private companies like SpaceX, they can launch
04:27things to the International Space Station, whether it be supplies or astronauts themselves.
04:33And all these different companies, competition is good for innovation.
04:37So with all these different companies, it's kind of forcing them to do something that
04:40we've never done before.
04:42So SpaceX, they're reusing rockets, which once was science fiction.
04:46Now they do it on a regular basis.
04:48And so every company, they're kind of trying to help out the way they can with NASA while
04:52also trying to succeed in their own way.
04:55And we talked a little bit about this ahead of time, but is there a time, at least in
04:59our lifetimes or maybe our kids' generation, when space travel will be as common as air
05:05travel, when regular people, not necessarily just the economic elite, have a shot at going
05:11to space recreationally?
05:12Well, Jeff, I want to say yes, and I believe the answer is yes, because there is a lot
05:17of demand there.
05:19Right now it is mostly really rich people that can afford to go to space, but there's
05:23a lot of people that want to go, and there's simply just not enough rockets.
05:28There's a long waiting list just to get on a ride to space.
05:31There's private companies out there, Blue Origin's doing it a lot, Virgin Galactic,
05:35SpaceX is launching some people.
05:37But simply, there's a lot of demand, but not a lot of supply.
05:40So I think we just need a lot more rockets, a lot more facilities to launch the rockets
05:44before we get to a high cadence of launches, where not just rich people can go, but anyone
05:50could go, where it does one day become something like flying in an airplane.
05:55A lot of people do that every single day, and that's kind of the direction where we're
05:59heading, but it's going to take a while to get there.
06:02Well, the moon, about 238,000 miles away, about 3,000 miles between New York and L.A.,
06:09so it's not that far away, but I suspect if you're traveling to the moon, you're not necessarily
06:13making a straight line path.
06:16So how long does it actually take to get to the moon?
06:19Well back in the Apollo era, it was taking them around three days to get there, they'd
06:23be at the moon for a day or two, and then a couple days to get home.
06:26And so it all depends on how you want to get there.
06:28If you just want to crash a rocket into the moon, you can get there pretty quick.
06:32Hard landing, though.
06:33Yeah, but if you want the return trip home, you need to take a bit of a slower method
06:35because you need fuel to come back and everything, and you need the orbits to get around the
06:42moon and come back to the Earth.
06:44So actually, NASA's Artemis program coming up to return humans to the lunar surface,
06:49it's going to be about a month-long mission.
06:51So launching, orbiting the Earth, going to the moon, and instead of spending one or two
06:55days on the moon, they're going to be spending about a week on the moon.
06:58So that's a lot more time to do science and explore the lunar surface to help us learn
07:02about the moon before coming back home.
07:04You'll have to pack a few lunches for that trip.
07:06Well, it is time for our first viewer question.
07:09This comes to us from Jeff in Florida, and Jeff writes, my question is about going back
07:13to the moon.
07:14So if we sent men to the moon in the late 1960s and early 1970s, why is it so difficult
07:20for us to do it again?
07:21Why haven't we done it more recently?
07:23And, you know, are we going to be doing it again sometime soon?
07:26You answered part of that question, but why haven't we done it again in the 70s, the 80s,
07:30and 90s?
07:31Well, I'll answer that with another question.
07:33How come you can't go out right now and buy a brand new Ford Model T car?
07:36And that's because what we need out of cars and the technology that goes into cars has
07:41changed over the years and evolved past that first form.
07:45And you know, the Saturn V rocket that got us to the moon, that's kind of like the Ford
07:48Model T, where it was great at the time, but then when we didn't need to go to the moon
07:53anymore, we didn't need that rocket anymore.
07:56So all the infrastructure to build it, you know, got repurposed or what have you.
08:00So really, we don't have the factory to build a moon rocket.
08:02So we need to start from scratch and build a brand new facility that could build brand
08:06new rockets that could do, you know, more technology and have more advancements to them
08:11compared to those first times.
08:13And since NASA doesn't have the budget like it had in the 60s, it's just taking a lot
08:17longer to do.
08:18But we are getting there.
08:20NASA's going to hopefully, as the plan goes, have astronauts on the surface of the moon
08:25before 19 or 19, before 2030.
08:28Okay.
08:29So to an extent, it sounds a little bit like for a time, it was kind of a bucket list item.
08:33We checked that box and there were other things to explore that may have de-incentivized making
08:37that a huge priority in the 1980s, for example.
08:40Yeah, but it is still a priority because there's still a lot of science to learn with going
08:44to the moon.
08:45Very cool.
08:46So are there any plans or is there any incentive to use the moon as a secondary launch base?
08:52There actually is because you got to crawl before you could run.
08:56And the long-term goal is to get humans to Mars.
08:58So if you, you got to get to the moon before you go to Mars.
09:01So one idea is we build a base on the moon and then launching a rocket from the moon
09:05would be way simpler to get to Mars than if we're launching directly from the earth.
09:09So that is one of the things that they're considering.
09:11That's still a long ways away though.
09:12So a couple of ideas are being thrown around, but you know, we got to get to the moon first.
09:16That's the first priority before we could go to those bigger goals of Mars or beyond.
09:21Is it because there's less gravity to overcome?
09:23Yeah, that's one of it.
09:24It's a lot easier to launch a rocket because there's less gravity there, but of course
09:27too, you need to get everything to the moon before you can launch it to Mars.
09:30That makes sense.
09:31You got to balance what the pros and cons.
09:33Okay.
09:34And in the long run, do you think this renewed interest in the private sector getting more
09:37involved is going to help accelerate the process of getting back to the moon?
09:41I think so.
09:43I think it's already leaning on some partners like SpaceX to get back to the moon.
09:46NASA's not just doing it themselves.
09:48So they're asking these private companies to build things or to help with the process,
09:52not only to make it easier for NASA, but maybe along the way, SpaceX might say, hey, we could
09:57do this too.
09:58NASA, you can go to the moon, but we're going to go as well.
10:01So that is also a possibility and one of the many opportunities when it comes to this,
10:05you know, the private sector of space launches.
10:08It's all very fascinating and we appreciate your insight into this.
10:11And, you know, Brian, we're going to have plenty more time to talk about some other
10:13topics here, kind of adjacent to some of the things we've discussed.
10:17And coming up also a little later in WeatherWise, we're going to find out how a lightning strike
10:23in 1987 changed the rules for NASA launches.
10:27After all, they do a lot there in the lightning capital of the nation, and that's coming up
10:31in our segment.
10:32Yeah, that really happened.
10:34Also after a brief landing, our conversation about space travel will take off yet again
10:39as we look into traveling into places beyond the moon.
10:42When Ask the Experts continues, stay with us here on the AccuWeather Network.
11:05Welcome back to AccuWeather's Ask the Experts.
11:07I'm your host, Jeff Cornish.
11:08And today we're going out of this world with our AccuWeather astronomy expert, Brian Leda.
11:12And Brian is back with us as we talk more about space travel, the past, present and
11:18looking to the future.
11:19So, Brian, we were discussing going back to the moon before the break and it's on the
11:23horizon.
11:24But let's talk about some of the inherent dangers that we still face as humans traveling
11:29into space.
11:30In a nutshell, with even better technology, it's hard to fight the sheer incapability
11:34of humans between humans and space.
11:37We're not compatible, I should say.
11:39Yeah, it's a great way to put it.
11:41We're not compatible for space.
11:42And there's more to it than just equipment.
11:44You know, you think Apollo 13, they thought fast on their feet to bring those astronauts
11:49home safe.
11:50And we have things to help us in that regard now, 3D printers.
11:53If there's a tool that breaks or a part, we might be able to print it in space so we could
11:57have a replacement.
11:59But humans, as you go farther away from the Earth, that's when you become more vulnerable
12:03to space because of radiation.
12:06Astronauts on the International Space Station, they're still protected a bit from Earth's
12:09magnetic field.
12:10But if you're talking about a trip to the moon or somewhere like Mars where you're outside
12:14of that protection, you can have long-term health effects with astronauts because of
12:19all that radiation.
12:20You know, going to Mars, a two-year trip, round trip, that's the shortest possible.
12:25So that's a long time to be exposed to radiation.
12:27But also the health of the astronauts in the short term, being in space, you could have
12:32muscle loss, bone density lowers, your eyes can actually have issues.
12:37And those are issues that we're still trying to challenge and try to solve, even though
12:40we've been going to space for so long.
12:43One of the many hurdles when it comes to space travel.
12:45Are there plans to go beyond the moon?
12:47And can we make it to Mars or other destinations in the solar system in the relatively near
12:51future?
12:52Well, after the moon, Mars is the next target because first off, it's close to the Earth.
12:57Second off, in our whole solar system, it's the planet that's most like Earth.
13:01So it makes sense for us to go there.
13:03But even though it's relatively close on space terms, it is incredibly far away.
13:08So there's a lot that we need to do before we can get to that point.
13:11You know, we got to go to the moon first, make sure all of our ducks are in a row.
13:14We know exactly what we're doing because we need to make sure everything goes right if
13:19we go on a trip to Mars.
13:20I like messing with my kids and reminding them that Mars is the only planet inhabited
13:25entirely by robots.
13:26Correct.
13:27That's true.
13:28And I've always been amazed over the past three or four years, we've seen some of the
13:30imagery here that you're looking at right now from the Mars rover.
13:34And you know, it looks a lot like the desert southwest.
13:37It's not that different compared to, you know, Venus or some of these other planets where
13:41you may not even be able to land physically.
13:43Yeah.
13:44And NASA actually sent astronauts to train out in parts of the west because the surface
13:48of Mars is kind of similar to the moon where there's a bunch of jagged rocks.
13:53So it's a great place to train if you're an astronaut to kind of get the closest representation
13:57of an otherworldly surface like that.
14:00Pretty cool.
14:01Looks pretty dry though.
14:02Well, NASA has sent multiple rovers and even a helicopter to Mars.
14:05So why go through the effort to send humans to the planet if we already have cameras and
14:11we can get to rocks and things like that and explore them at least remotely?
14:14Well, robots are great.
14:16We have two nuclear powered robots up there, Curiosity and Perseverance, powered by plutonium.
14:21So they don't need to rely on the sun for energy or anything.
14:24And they can run around and do some science, but they're very limited because they need
14:29to be controlled by us here on Earth.
14:31So even if you want to drive the rover 10 feet, you know, it takes a couple of minutes
14:34for a radio signal to go one way.
14:37So NASA needs to write a program, send it to the rover, takes a couple of minutes.
14:41Then it needs to drive 10 feet and making sure nothing's in its way to prevent it.
14:45And then it takes a couple more minutes for us to find out if it actually did that.
14:49And that's just driving forward, let alone doing science experiments.
14:52Now if we have an astronaut on the surface of Mars, give them a shovel and they could
14:55dig a hole.
14:56So that's a lot easier to make observations and find discoveries and what have you.
15:02But getting humans to Mars is much more difficult than getting a rover.
15:06So there's certainly pros and cons of both ways.
15:09And I think even after we send humans to Mars, we'll still send rovers there too because
15:13there's a lot that they can do.
15:15Pretty fascinating.
15:16Another test of patience for somebody trying to control something with like a 10 minute
15:19delay between beginning to see that activity actually take place.
15:25Well what is NASA hoping to find when we do go back to the moon in the short term?
15:31One of the things with going to the moon, we're going somewhere we haven't gone before
15:34and that's somewhere around the South Pole.
15:36And one reason behind that is because NASA thinks that there could be water in the form
15:40of ice.
15:41And if you find water, that's a valuable resource in space, not only for astronauts if you need
15:45to drink it, but it could be potentially used for other factors as well.
15:49So if we could find some sort of water on the moon, that would be a game changer.
15:53Plus too, who knows, if they find gold or other material that's crucial to life on Earth,
15:58that could blow open the doors to a whole new space race.
16:00That's pretty exciting.
16:01Yeah, you never know.
16:02Well, we want to get to our next viewer question.
16:04This comes to us from Steve in Pennsylvania.
16:06And Steve, what would you like to ask the expert?
16:09You know, I remember the Challenger disaster and that cold air that was such a factor in
16:13that disaster.
16:15What can they do going forward?
16:16Just kind of keeping weather in mind and weather conditions for future rocket launches?
16:22Well, weather is more important than ever before because we have new rockets that have
16:27new weather constraints compared to things like the space shuttle.
16:30But also too, you look at SpaceX, they're not just launching rockets, they're landing
16:33rockets in the ocean.
16:34So you need to make sure that the weather in the ocean is good.
16:37If there's rough surf or high winds and they can't land that rocket properly, then that
16:42throws off their whole launch schedule.
16:43So weather is more important than it ever has been when it comes to launching rockets.
16:47That makes good sense.
16:48Wave heights, things like this that you wouldn't necessarily initially think about, but it's
16:53all very relevant.
16:54Well, we appreciate all your insight.
16:56Once again, Brian, we love talking to you about the world of space and space travel
17:00especially.
17:01And thanks again for joining us to, again, AccuWeather astronomy expert and meteorologist
17:05Brian Leda.
17:06You can see Brian's work on our website, accuweather.com, and also on our astronomy
17:11Twitter feed.
17:12We have a separate Twitter follow on X, AccuAstronomy.
17:16It's a really good follow, highly recommended.
17:18Well, don't forget, when you have a question about weather, space, or science, you can
17:23always write us or send us a video question at asktheexperts at accuweather.com.
17:28You can also call us or leave us your question at 888-566-6606.
17:36Coming up soon on WeatherWise, we're going to have the story on how a lightning strike
17:40almost 30 years ago changed the rules for how NASA launches rockets today.
17:45It's part of our WeatherWise segment, Yeah, That Really Happened, when we continue.
18:04Welcome back to AccuWeather's Ask the Experts.
18:07It is time for WeatherWise and a segment we call Yeah, That Really Happened, where
18:12we look at strange weather events.
18:14Today we're looking at when lightning struck a rocket.
18:17This happened back on March 26th of 1987.
18:21NASA was preparing for a crewless rocket launch at Cape Canaveral.
18:25The mission that day was to send a naval communications satellite into orbit, but with overcast skies,
18:31weather conditions were poor that afternoon.
18:3348 seconds after ignition, a cloud-to-ground lightning strike was caused by the launch
18:38itself, hitting the rocket as it was leaving the launch pad.
18:42The lightning caused controls to fail and the rocket fell apart, sending flaming debris
18:47into the ocean during a heavy thunderstorm.
18:51Both the launch vehicle and the satellite were destroyed.
18:53Fortunately, there were no casualties because, again, there was no crew on board.
18:58After the incident, new NASA rules were developed with guidelines to determine if weather conditions
19:04allow for a launch on any given day.
19:06So yeah, this event really happened.
19:08Lightning did strike a rocket, ultimately destroying it.
19:12And many of you who are space enthusiasts are interested in these launches that are
19:16well-publicized these days.
19:18You're aware that the weather has to be pretty optimal for the launch to be green-lighted.
19:23There are often a lot of scrubs because of weather conditions.
19:29Thanks again for joining us here on AccuWeather's Ask the Experts.
19:32I'm Jeff Cornish.
19:33Don't forget, whenever you have a question about weather, space, or science, you can
19:36write us or send us a video question at AsktheExperts at AccuWeather.com.
19:41You can also call us at 888-566-6606.
19:46Thanks for being with us.
19:47Have a great one.