Matthew Hersch: Reassessing the History of US Government Spaceflight Programs

Feb 4, 2025
3:40pm - 5:40pm

In the brief history of human space exploration, governmental entities have dominated the field for the majority of the time, with private actors primarily participating as individual contractors. The United States stands out as one of the longstanding spacefaring nations, notable for having the largest share of commercial participation and a constant effort to foster private-sector involvement in supplying essential space infrastructure.

Professor Hersch’s book, Dark Star: A New History of the Space Shuttle, explores its failure as a technological demonstrator and aims to answer a fundamental question: why did the Space Shuttle fail to make spaceflight cheap, safe, and routine? It also provides a broader perspective on the concept of failure within the context of American technological and cultural history.

Matthew Hersch is Associate Professor of the History of Science at Harvard University. He holds a JD from NYU Law.

This is a session of the  IILJ Colloquium on Space and Planetary Law & Governance.