---
product_id: 1035147
title: "Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier"
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---

# Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier

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America’s space program is at a turning point. After decades of global primacy, NASA has ended the space-shuttle program, cutting off its access to space. No astronauts will be launched in an American craft, from American soil, until the 2020s, and NASA may soon find itself eclipsed by other countries’ space programs.With his signature wit and thought-provoking insights, Neil deGrasse Tyson—one of our foremost thinkers on all things space—illuminates the past, present, and future of space exploration and brilliantly reminds us why NASA matters now as much as ever. As Tyson reveals, exploring the space frontier can profoundly enrich many aspects of our daily lives, from education systems and the economy to national security and morale. For America to maintain its status as a global leader and a technological innovator, he explains, we must regain our enthusiasm and curiosity about what lies beyond our world.Provocative, humorous, and wonderfully readable, Space Chronicles represents the best of Tyson’s recent commentary, including a must-read prologue on NASA and partisan politics. Reflecting on topics that range from scientific literacy to space-travel missteps, Tyson gives us an urgent, clear-eyed, and ultimately inspiring vision for the future.

Review: Tyson Presents an Alluring Look at the Politics, Technological Barriers, and Future of Space Flight - On October 4, 1957, the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, was launched into orbit. This technological first marked the beginning of a new era of competition between the former Soviet Union and the United States. While on the surface the Space Race might have appeared to be spurred on by man's desire for knowledge and exploration, in truth, the only thing that made man's footprints on the Moon possible was the looming Cold War and aspiration to assert technological dominance over each other. Adjusted for inflation, the Apollo program today would cost over 200 billion dollars, twenty times the yearly budget of NASA. It is unlikely any of us alive today will ever see man step foot on the Moon or another planetary surface, or see the equivalent of what millions of people witnessed on July 20, 1969 when Apollo 11 landed on the Moon. The overwhelming costs, technological hurdles, and political backdrop are what make the Space Race such a fascinating subject, and it would be hard to find someone who is so passionate about it or conveys these ideas better than astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson. Like his last novel Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries , Space Chronicles is a compilation of previously-published articles and talks over the last fifteen years, with a central theme of the Space Race and exploration (although some of the chapters don't really fit this theme entirely). It is mostly centered on the United States' involvement with a look at the development of NASA. It contains an original prologue by Dr. Tyson with a discussion on Space Politics, with a focus on the last three presidential administrations. A selection of Dr. Tyson's tweets (which are usually interesting facts about the Universe) are scattered in relevant sections throughout the book, and add short distractions to the current chapter. The rest of the book is divided into three sections: Part 1 - Why - Articles detailing with the reasons humans desire to explore space Part 2 - How - Articles concerned with how we have overcome the barriers to space entry. Part 3 - Why Not - These chapters are mostly ideological articles and speeches about why we should explore space. The last third of the book contain Appendices related to NASA and space travel. I think they're a nice addition to Space Chronicles, although I'm pretty sure they were added as filler, since without them, the actual content of the book is only 220 pages. All of them are easily found online but they make a nice reference while reading and I frequently found myself going back to them. They consist of: National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 (the law that created NASA) NASA's budget from 1959-2010 2010 Space Budgets for the United States and Globally Space Budgets: US and Non US: 2010 Anyone who has enjoyed Dr. Tyson's previous books will enjoy Space Chronicles. Since it doesn't deal with as much cosmology, it is a bit easier read than his last book, Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries . I also found it more persuasive. Space exploration is a subject Dr. Tyson excels at. For anyone who has ever heard him give a speech on the subject, he offers up very convincing reasons for the necessity of a space program, many which will resonate long after finishing the book. A great example of this is the final chapter in the book, which is a speech given at the University of Buffalo that I originally saw two years ago, and still has a powerful impact on me today. Unlike Death by Black Hole, which seemed to be a bit thrown together and thematically forced, the articles that make up Space Chronicles flow much easier into each other and under their relevant chapters, although you will notice some repetition throughout them. The speeches that make up some of the chapters are also well-adapted, although I strongly encourage anyone who enjoys them to go back and watch the original videos, or actually, to just skip those chapters and watch the videos instead (especially the last chapter). The main reason Dr. Tyson is so successful as a media figure is due to his ability to convey subject matter to his audience, and he does this best in person, where his passion and oration can really stand out. Almost all of the material from this book is already available publicly online. The only original material I noticed was the prologue and a poem (Ode to Challenger, 1986). Although it's been published before, I think the editor has done an excellent job in culling through Tyson's large body of work to pick the best material, and arranged it in a way that makes for an intriguing (albeit very short) read. Some of the chapters are as short as one paragraph, others are a dozen pages or so. Tyson's most ardent fans might find the material a bit too familiar, but as a whole, Space Chronicles presents itself as a nicely-wrapped look at the last fifty years of space travel, and what's in store for the future. All of the material works well in the book, but all of the chapters adapted from speeches are much better when viewed in their original video presentation. Other than the length of the book, the only real criticism I could give it is that it doesn't source the original material. A few of the chapters do this and actually state at the top that they are from videos, but most of them don't. I can't figure out any rhyme or reason to including this information on some but not others, which would seem simple enough to do (I was able to find almost all of it in about an hour). If you are interested in reading some of the articles or videos from the book, I will provide links to all of those that I've been able to find that are in the public domain, as well as book previews from the publisher and Google Books in the review comments below.
Review: Worth the read!! - ...especially if you know what you are getting. This is a collection of interviews, essays, editorials and missives by Tyson, who I consider to be a phenomenal communicator. This is not a book but a collection of his positions on space, NASA, politics, and science, etc., These individual components are loosely organized by theme, but there is a redundancy throughout the book, which is exactly what you would expect. This is NDT telling us why we should be excited about further exploration of space, and laying out the reasons in many different formats. It is (in this sense) repetitive because his message is consiostent and often certain events are cited repeatedly throughout the book. However, his message, even repetitively stated, is compelling, inspiring, and beautifully delivered. NDTs passion is obvious and his true gift, making these complex topics accessible to lay public, is what makes this book a fun read. It will stimulate reflection, conversation and debate. And this is GOOD!! The book gets a 5, but the audiobook loses some stardust and gets a 4. A warning, and the ONLY reason this gets four insted of five stars. If (like me) you bought the kindle version and listened to some of it via audiobook, take heed. The narrator of the Audible product is (unfortunately) not Tyson, but someone who is a little robotic and who has a tendency to mispronounce just enough of the words to approach "Oh...come on" status. Examples: Anton Von Leowenhoek's name, Jai Alai, tertiary, Xenon (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX1xRtDXIvE), and Saturn "Vee" (as opposed to Saturn V, as in five) all drove me crazy when repeatedly pronounced incorrectly. Knowing Dr. Tyson's respect for language, I suspect he too would cringe at these pronunciations.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #6,760,871 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #41 in Astronautics & Space Flight #93 in Aeronautics & Astronautics (Books) #122 in Astrophysics & Space Science (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.6 out of 5 stars 683 Reviews |

## Images

![Space Chronicles: Facing the Ultimate Frontier - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61X+ol-XcLL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Tyson Presents an Alluring Look at the Politics, Technological Barriers, and Future of Space Flight
*by J***O on February 20, 2012*

On October 4, 1957, the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1, was launched into orbit. This technological first marked the beginning of a new era of competition between the former Soviet Union and the United States. While on the surface the Space Race might have appeared to be spurred on by man's desire for knowledge and exploration, in truth, the only thing that made man's footprints on the Moon possible was the looming Cold War and aspiration to assert technological dominance over each other. Adjusted for inflation, the Apollo program today would cost over 200 billion dollars, twenty times the yearly budget of NASA. It is unlikely any of us alive today will ever see man step foot on the Moon or another planetary surface, or see the equivalent of what millions of people witnessed on July 20, 1969 when Apollo 11 landed on the Moon. The overwhelming costs, technological hurdles, and political backdrop are what make the Space Race such a fascinating subject, and it would be hard to find someone who is so passionate about it or conveys these ideas better than astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson. Like his last novel Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries , Space Chronicles is a compilation of previously-published articles and talks over the last fifteen years, with a central theme of the Space Race and exploration (although some of the chapters don't really fit this theme entirely). It is mostly centered on the United States' involvement with a look at the development of NASA. It contains an original prologue by Dr. Tyson with a discussion on Space Politics, with a focus on the last three presidential administrations. A selection of Dr. Tyson's tweets (which are usually interesting facts about the Universe) are scattered in relevant sections throughout the book, and add short distractions to the current chapter. The rest of the book is divided into three sections: Part 1 - Why - Articles detailing with the reasons humans desire to explore space Part 2 - How - Articles concerned with how we have overcome the barriers to space entry. Part 3 - Why Not - These chapters are mostly ideological articles and speeches about why we should explore space. The last third of the book contain Appendices related to NASA and space travel. I think they're a nice addition to Space Chronicles, although I'm pretty sure they were added as filler, since without them, the actual content of the book is only 220 pages. All of them are easily found online but they make a nice reference while reading and I frequently found myself going back to them. They consist of: National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958 (the law that created NASA) NASA's budget from 1959-2010 2010 Space Budgets for the United States and Globally Space Budgets: US and Non US: 2010 Anyone who has enjoyed Dr. Tyson's previous books will enjoy Space Chronicles. Since it doesn't deal with as much cosmology, it is a bit easier read than his last book, Death by Black Hole: And Other Cosmic Quandaries . I also found it more persuasive. Space exploration is a subject Dr. Tyson excels at. For anyone who has ever heard him give a speech on the subject, he offers up very convincing reasons for the necessity of a space program, many which will resonate long after finishing the book. A great example of this is the final chapter in the book, which is a speech given at the University of Buffalo that I originally saw two years ago, and still has a powerful impact on me today. Unlike Death by Black Hole, which seemed to be a bit thrown together and thematically forced, the articles that make up Space Chronicles flow much easier into each other and under their relevant chapters, although you will notice some repetition throughout them. The speeches that make up some of the chapters are also well-adapted, although I strongly encourage anyone who enjoys them to go back and watch the original videos, or actually, to just skip those chapters and watch the videos instead (especially the last chapter). The main reason Dr. Tyson is so successful as a media figure is due to his ability to convey subject matter to his audience, and he does this best in person, where his passion and oration can really stand out. Almost all of the material from this book is already available publicly online. The only original material I noticed was the prologue and a poem (Ode to Challenger, 1986). Although it's been published before, I think the editor has done an excellent job in culling through Tyson's large body of work to pick the best material, and arranged it in a way that makes for an intriguing (albeit very short) read. Some of the chapters are as short as one paragraph, others are a dozen pages or so. Tyson's most ardent fans might find the material a bit too familiar, but as a whole, Space Chronicles presents itself as a nicely-wrapped look at the last fifty years of space travel, and what's in store for the future. All of the material works well in the book, but all of the chapters adapted from speeches are much better when viewed in their original video presentation. Other than the length of the book, the only real criticism I could give it is that it doesn't source the original material. A few of the chapters do this and actually state at the top that they are from videos, but most of them don't. I can't figure out any rhyme or reason to including this information on some but not others, which would seem simple enough to do (I was able to find almost all of it in about an hour). If you are interested in reading some of the articles or videos from the book, I will provide links to all of those that I've been able to find that are in the public domain, as well as book previews from the publisher and Google Books in the review comments below.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Worth the read!!
*by C***N on January 16, 2016*

...especially if you know what you are getting. This is a collection of interviews, essays, editorials and missives by Tyson, who I consider to be a phenomenal communicator. This is not a book but a collection of his positions on space, NASA, politics, and science, etc., These individual components are loosely organized by theme, but there is a redundancy throughout the book, which is exactly what you would expect. This is NDT telling us why we should be excited about further exploration of space, and laying out the reasons in many different formats. It is (in this sense) repetitive because his message is consiostent and often certain events are cited repeatedly throughout the book. However, his message, even repetitively stated, is compelling, inspiring, and beautifully delivered. NDTs passion is obvious and his true gift, making these complex topics accessible to lay public, is what makes this book a fun read. It will stimulate reflection, conversation and debate. And this is GOOD!! The book gets a 5, but the audiobook loses some stardust and gets a 4. A warning, and the ONLY reason this gets four insted of five stars. If (like me) you bought the kindle version and listened to some of it via audiobook, take heed. The narrator of the Audible product is (unfortunately) not Tyson, but someone who is a little robotic and who has a tendency to mispronounce just enough of the words to approach "Oh...come on" status. Examples: Anton Von Leowenhoek's name, Jai Alai, tertiary, Xenon (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX1xRtDXIvE), and Saturn "Vee" (as opposed to Saturn V, as in five) all drove me crazy when repeatedly pronounced incorrectly. Knowing Dr. Tyson's respect for language, I suspect he too would cringe at these pronunciations.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I've enjoyed reading this book more than any other non-fiction I've read
*by M***L on March 22, 2012*

Simply put I enjoyed this book like I enjoy reading good science fiction. Neil's writing is easy to follow and he presents the concepts in a way you do not need a PhD to understand. It's hard to read a chapter in this book and go back to your normal, non-space living life. Very few things in our daily lives can seem interesting in comparison to the workings of the universe! The one negative I have is the book is a collection of essays, and as such there is a tendency to repeat it self. It wasn't overbearing, and many of the repeated themes are the most important, but I would have liked Neil to have written the book as a whole instead of in stand alone parts. I will say after reading the lower reviews here (at the time of my own review) I have to wonder if they read the book. Neil states clearly his support for private space travel. He also points out the cost, the $500 billion to go to Mars, is over 30 years and only an increase of NASA's budget by $100 billion (over those 30 years). He's quite repetitive in stating NASA is 0.5% of the budget (and during the space race it was 4%). He does talk about the expensive mistakes too, including the two shuttle disasters and the Hubble launch. I'm old enough to remember the constant talk show jokes and political sound bites when the Hubble didn't work. Neil points out though that blurry Hubble photos lead to a break through in breast cancer detection and there are women alive today because of a NASA mistake. I'm also old enough to remember being in school when the Challenger exploded. I remember the shock, but I also remember the spirit we had at the time. We were going have a school teacher in space and have a class with her teaching - from space! I had a book that talked about vacation trips to the moon. I expected we would have those by now. And we still might. Just that it won't be the USA leading the charge, but China and USSR. One day we'll wake up and wonder how it all flipped around - why we are working on Foxconn plants and China is the world leader. The answer is simple - the USA stopped dreaming of a better tomorrow.

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*Last updated: 2026-05-28*