Abstract

            The modern “Space Renaissance” differs from the Space Race of the 1960’s, when government managed programs from NASA dominated mission operations. Today, scores of commercial companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin, Sierra Space, Axiom, and Vast (to name just a few) are leading the next generation of innovation in human space exploration. Aspirations of privately owned orbital space stations, bases on the Moon, and colonization of Mars are all seemingly just with reach.

Yet as entrepreneurs and innovators help to accelerate human-kind’s emergence as an interstellar species, we cannot forget the lessons, both triumphant and tragic, upon which those achievements were founded. As we mark the 40th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger accident, it is worth revisiting the lessons learned to ensure that safety remains the top priority as human spaceflight becomes increasingly led by commercial organizations.