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Space flight

Updated: Jul 26

The image shows a launch of a spaceshuttle. The spaceshuttle is on top of an external tank with fuel that has two solid rocket boosters on its sides. A tower that held the spaceshuttle is visible on its left side and clouds of smoke are spreading outwards the engines that are on, as the spaceshuttle lifts up.

Launching various spacecraft into the outer space is not a rare event anymore. We have tons of communication satellites, reconnaissance satellites and Earth observing satellites in the orbits. But satellites are not the only objects that are launched to space. Space probes missions and human missions to space stations, or even to the Moon, are considered space flight too. But what are the challenges of space flight? As universe is vast, it is not easy to move fast enough to reach the closest stars within a lifetime of a human. Even travelling to the planets of the Solar System have many challenges connected to space radiation. Spacecraft need shielding but even then, some energetic particles can get inside and cause severe problems to the electronics and computer chips. That is why there have to be radiation simulation tests before ever launch. Once the spacecraft is on its mission through space, space weather still has to be monitored and well forecasted, so any possible problems can be mitigated.

Learn more about space flight, its challenges, its history and the effects of space weather on spacecraft in our audio booklet.