On October 1, 1958, the world's first civilian space agency opened for
business as an emergency response to the Soviet Union's launch of
Sputnik a year earlier. Within a decade, the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration, universally known as NASA, had evolved from modest
research teams experimenting with small converted rockets into one of
the greatest technological and managerial enterprises ever known,
capable of sending people to the Moon aboard gigantic rockets and of
dispatching robot explorers to Venus, Mars, and worlds far beyond. In
spite of occasional, tragic setbacks in NASA's history, the Apollo lunar
landing project remains a byword for American ingenuity; the winged
space shuttles spearheaded the International Space Station and a
dazzling array of astronomical satellites and robotic landers, and Earth
observation programs have transformed our understanding of the cosmos
and our home world's fragile place within it.
Throughout NASA's 60-year history, images have played a central role.
Who today is not familiar with the Hubble Space Telescope's mesmerizing
views of the universe or the pin-sharp panoramas of Mars from NASA's
surface rovers? And who could forget the photographs of the first men
walking on the Moon?
This compact edition is derived from our XL edition, which was
researched in collaboration with NASA, and gathers hundreds of historic
photographs and rare concept renderings, scanned and remastered using
the latest technology. Texts by science and technology journalist Piers
Bizony, former NASA chief historian Roger Launius, and best-selling
Apollo historian Andrew Chaikin round out this comprehensive exploration
of NASA, from its earliest days to its current development of new space
systems for the future.
The NASA Archives is more than just a fascinating pictorial history of
the U.S. space program. It is also a profound meditation on why we
choose to explore space and how we will carry on this grandest of all
adventures in the years to come.
About the series
TASCHEN is 40! Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in
1980, TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible publishing, helping
bookworms around the world curate their own library of art,
anthropology, and aphrodisia at an unbeatable price. Today we celebrate
40 years of incredible books by staying true to our company credo. The
40 series presents new editions of some of the stars of our program--now
more compact, friendly in price, and still realized with the same
commitment to impeccable production.
