posted 02-25-2011 12:08 PM               

50 Years of Human Space Flight: Key Turning Points

12 April 2011 (7 - 8.30 pm)

Many believe the first 50 years of human space flight is a natural progression of human endeavour, fuelled by a ‘frontier’ spirit, by a sense of adventure and by mankind’s innately inquisitive nature. But that interpretation would be false, for such reasons have yet to stimulate a sustained human presence in space. Several times during the last 50 years human space flight was all but shut down. Where were those critical points, when did they occur and why? We discuss critical periods, some that have not yet appeared in print but which are key to fully understanding why we did what we did over this last half century. We go deep behind the scenes to examine the myths that veil the reality behind key decisions made over the first 50 years of human space flight.