Space Stations: The Art, Science, and Reality of Working in Space

A rich visual history of real and fictional space stations, illustrating pop culture's influence on the development of actual space stations and vice versa

Space stations represent both the summit of space technology and, possibly, the future of humanity beyond Earth. Space Stations: The Art, Science, and Reality of Working in Space takes the reader deep into the heart of past, present, and future space stations, both real ones and those dreamed up in popular culture. This lavishly illustrated book explains the development of space stations from the earliest fictional visions through historical and current programs--including Skylab, Mir, and the International Space Station--and on to the dawning possibilities of large-scale space colonization. Engrossing narrative and striking images explore not only the spacecraft themselves but also how humans experience life aboard them, addressing everything from the development of efficient meal preparation methods to experiments in space-based botany. The book examines cutting-edge developments in government and commercial space stations, including NASA's Deep Space Habitats, the Russian Orbital Technologies Commercial Space Station, and China's Tiangong program. Throughout, Space Stations also charts the fascinating depiction of space stations in popular culture, whether in the form of children's toys, comic-book spacecraft, settings in science-fiction novels, or the backdrop to TV series and Hollywood movies. Space Stations is a beautiful and captivating history of the idea and the reality of the space station from the nineteenth century to the present day.

GARY KITMACHER is the mission manager for education and outreach at the Johnson Space Center. He has played a direct and vital role in NASA's ISS program. RON MILLER is an artist and author who specializes in writing and illustrating books on astronomy, astronautics, and science fiction. He recently published Spaceships: An Illustrated History of the Real and the Imagined. He has served on the faculty of the International Space University, as contributing editor for Air & Space/Smithsonian magazines, and as art director for the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Albert Einstein Planetarium. ROBERT PEARLMAN is an American space historian and the founder and editor of collectSPACE, a website devoted to news and information concerning space exploration and space-related artifacts and memorabilia, especially in popular culture.