Spacefarers: How Humans Will Settle the Moon, Mars, and Beyond in Science and Inquiry

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Aug 18, 2021 Jim rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 1audio, 2non-fiction, science

Wanjek looks at space colonization through a very practical, economic lens which includes actual colonization. He defines the last with couples having children 'naturally'; very persuasive & practical arguments. He looks at energy requirements & the current technologies for producing it. This is a rather broad view that brings into focus what we need to explore & aim for to spread throughout space. He also points out possible services & goods that these outposts can provide to insure economic vi Wanjek looks at space colonization through a very practical, economic lens which includes actual colonization. He defines the last with couples having children 'naturally'; very persuasive & practical arguments. He looks at energy requirements & the current technologies for producing it. This is a rather broad view that brings into focus what we need to explore & aim for to spread throughout space. He also points out possible services & goods that these outposts can provide to insure economic viability since without some ROI (preferably profit, of course) space remains the domain of countries & a slave to their current administration. Just how badly this has hurt NASA's various projects is both directly & indirectly addressed.

Like me, he's a fan of NASA's & doesn't forgive them for the space shuttle & ISS debacles. Yes, both were because they spent a huge portion of the budget without advancing our knowledge nearly as much as many shelved projects. I especially liked the way he pointed out how obvious it was that microgravity is bad (1% bone loss per month!) & that it's practically criminal that no experiments have been done with lesser gravity situations such as those equal to Mars or Luna. Just how much is 'enough' gravity? We still don't know & we should. We haven't even tested any ways of creating it at scale, so the long trip to Mars is not feasible at this time. The astronauts would arrive in such bad shape that it would threaten the mission.

He starts in the local solar system & works his way out as the book progresses. Of course, the opportunities for colonization & economic rewards vary a lot. They become scarcer, but still remain even in the outer reaches of the solar system. Many of the moons are mentioned, albeit briefly, but that fit well within the confines of the book & left me wanting to read more on some subjects. He also provides his own guesses as to what the future holds.

Table of Contents
Introduction: Pre-Launch
1. Living on Earth
2. Checkup before Countdown
3. Living in Orbit
4. Living on the Moon
5. Living on Asteroids
6. Living on Mars
7. Living in the Inner and Outer Solar System and Beyond
Epilogue: Welcome Home

Well narrated, entertaining, & very interesting. Highly recommended.

Update 18Aug2021: I watched Disney's Man in Space (1955). This was one of their Sunday shows which came on at 7pm on channel 11 when I was a kid & was a time the whole family watched TV together. The show aired 2 years before Sputnik, so I was surprised by how well the basics were explained including the first quarter being a history of rockets. The explanations were enhanced by quirky cartoons, too. Werner Von Braun & other notable rocket pioneers were not only mentioned, but spoke at some length on their parts of the space program. Von Braun describes a 4 stage rocket that boosted a space shuttle nose cone carrying 1o people into orbit which then glided back down. The 1300 degree hull temp they projected was less than half that of the space shuttle (3000F) but I was still impressed by how much they got right. It's well worth watching. ...more

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Sep 03, 2025 CatReader rated it really liked it

Christopher Wanjek is a science journalist; his 2020 book Spacefarers is an imaginative exploration on how humans might explore, utilize, and ultimately settle in areas of our solar system beyond Earth. This was an interesting, engaging listen, though it remains to be seen how much of Wanjek's starry-eyed (pun intended) aspirations may ultimately come into fruition.

Further reading: other books on solar system exploration I'd recommend
The Sirens of Mars: Searching for Life on Another World by Sar ...more

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Aug 12, 2020 Zac marked it as unread

Shelves: 1-my-books, science, physics-and-cosmology, non-fiction, ink, space, first-edition, technology

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