TWO MINUTES WITH Roger D Launius

When does the history of space exploration begin?

One could say it began with the first successful rockets, and if anyone wants to date it from Sputnik 1 in 1957 I would not argue. I tend to push the beginning back to the time of the Scientific Revolution. When humans first realised that some of those points of light in the night sky might be planets they also began thinking about how they might visit them. The process of getting there required centuries more before realisation.

Which of the rocket-powered missions are your favourites?

Beyond Apollo, I am endlessly amazed by the voyages of discovery to the outer Solar System. Pioneers 10 and 11, Voyagers 1 and 2, Galileo, the Cassini Huygens mission to Saturn, cometary missions and New Horizons to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt are all fascinating and have rewritten our understanding of the Solar System and its place in the cosmos.

What are your hopes for the future of space travel?

Humans may be able to return to the Moon and establish a permanent presence there. The next most likely goal would be a coalition of nations to pursue human exploration of the Solar System: asteroids and the moons of Jupiter and Saturn, for example. The most obvious target would be Mars. Because of the cost, technology and risk it seems unlikely any one nation would undertake an expedition to Mars. An international endeavour spreads the risk, cost and difficulty.