As part of our ongoing series on space conspiracy theories, we brought in expert help to tackle one of the most virulent conspiracy theorists of our day. This week, Quinn, Chris, and Other Chris are joined by Dan Friesen of the Knowledge Fight podcast to talk about all the dumb things Alex Jones believes about space. What has happened in space, what will happen in space, and whether Alex will get his own planet.
Support FTL on Patreon to unlock bonus content and Discord access!
Theme song by DJ Danarchy
This is a preview of a bonus episode. To hear the rest of the episode and unlock more bonus content, consider supporting Failure To Launch on Patreon.
In early 1961, NASA was actually very well positioned to launch an American into space before the Soviets. Then they messed it up. This week, Quinn, Chris, and Other Chris take a look into what was happening at NASA in the months before Vostok 1 flew. We cover the infamous Four Inch Flight, the first chimp in space, and the debate over how safe a rocket should really be before strapping Alan Shepard into it.
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus content and Discord access!
Sources:
Beyond, Stephen Walker
Redstone: The Missile That Launched America Into Space, Drew LePage
Giving Mercury Its Wings, Drew LePage
Theme song by DJ Danarchy
This is an unlocked patreon bonus episode. If you want to hear more content like this, consider supporting FTL on Patreon.
For this bonus, we've got Chris, Other Chris, and returning guest Nicholas Slayton getting Tarkovsky-pilled again and talking about the 1979 classic Stalker.
In 1962, President Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt (or the UAR) showed the world his newest toys: a set of tiny, dinky missiles that could carry 60 kilos of explosives apiece. Needless to say, the head of the Israeli Mossad flipped out and ordered a campaign of assassinations on the German scientists who'd built them. This week, we're talking to Devon from the Kill James Bond podcast about Operation Damocles: a story of dumb rockets and dumber spies.
Listen to Devon's work on: Kill James Bond, Well There's Your Problem, and 10K Posts!
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Sources:
- Reflections on Egypt, the Middle East, and History, Khaled Fahmy
- Nasser and the Missile Age in the Middle East, Owen Sirrs
Theme song by DJ Danarchy
𝔾𝕠𝕕'𝕤 𝕀𝕣𝕠𝕟𝕪
This week, Quinn, Chris, and Other Chris subject themselves to Moon landing hoaxer Bart Sibrel's second "documentary", Astronauts Gone Wild. Spoiler: there's precious little astronauts going wild and it's bad even as conspiracy propaganda.
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus episodes!
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy
This is a preview of a bonus episode. To hear the rest of the episode and unlock more bonus content, consider supporting Failure To Launch on Patreon.
Sometimes it's better not to go to space. This week, we're talking to guest and space industry engineer Robin about the story of Soyuz T-10A or "that time the LES flung a Soviet crew to safety 3 seconds before their rocket detonated".
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Sources:
- Soyuz T-10A: The First Crewed On-Pad Abort, Drew LePage
- Russianspaceweb, Anatoly Zak
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy
CONTENT WARNING
This week, Quinn, Chris, and Other Chris are covering the 1980 Plesetsk Cosmodrome explosion, probably the 2nd most lethal accident in space history.
Sources:
- RussianSpaceWeb, Anatoly Zak
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy
This is a preview of a bonus episode. To hear the rest of the episode and unlock more bonus content, consider supporting Failure To Launch on Patreon.
Ever since satellites have existed, people have wanted to find ways to kill them. This week, Quinn, Chris, and Other Chris are taking a look at the 2007 Chinese Anti-Satellite Test - the largest debris-creating event in space history - and the larger trend of nations trying to turn Low Earth Orbit into the zero-g Somme.
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Sources:
- Characteristics and Consequences of the Break-up of the Fengyun-1C Spacecraft, NASA
- Analysis of the 2007 Chinese ASAT Test and the Impact of its Debris on the Space Environment, T.S. Kelso
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy
This is a preview of a bonus episode. To hear the rest of the episode and unlock more bonus content, consider supporting Failure To Launch on Patreon.
Heartbreak can be a terrible thing and people work through it in all kinds of ways. Some people drink. Some people attempt to summon an incarnation of Babalon to be their new girlfriend. We're back and we're talking with rocket test engineer Guest Chris about Jack Parsons. In this episode we cover the downfall of Jack Parsons and his ostracization from both the scientific and magical communities.
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Sources:
- Strange Angel, George Pendel
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy
Jack. 210. 𝕿𝖍𝖊𝖑𝖊𝖒𝖆 𝕺𝖇𝖙𝖊𝖓𝖙𝖚𝖒 𝕻𝖗𝖔𝖈𝖊𝖉𝖊𝖗𝖔 𝕬𝖒𝖔𝖗𝖎𝖘 𝕹𝖚𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖆𝖊. John Whiteside Parsons went by many appellations. In part 2 of our series, we talk to rocket test engineer Chris about how Jack got into Thelema and how he pioneered a frightening amount of modern rocket fuels while chainsmoking.
Sources:
- Strange Angel, George Pendel
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy
In a field of weirdos and freaks, Jack Parsons is broadly considered the weirdest freak of all. This week, we're joined by guest and space engineer Chris for our series on the life, accomplishments, and sex life of John Whiteside Parsons.
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Sign up to the FTL Patreon at any tier and get access to our new Discord community.
Sources:
- Strange Angel, George Pendel
- Jack Parsons, Famous Bi People
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy
In the late 80s, the Soviet Union attempted to dominate the commercial launch market. Their principal success was launching the most miserable salaryman into orbit. Today, we're joined by Josh from The Worst of All Possible Worlds podcast to talk about Glavkosmos, the Soviet private space program.
Find Josh and Worst Of All Possible Worlds here
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Source:
- Soyuz TM-11, Spacefacts.de
- Soviet Efforts To Enter the Launch-Services Market, CIA
- Akiyama Toyohiro: The Japanese Astronaut Who Hated Space, Unseen Japan
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy.
𝙸'𝚟𝚎 𝚍𝚛𝚊𝚏𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚊 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚒𝚐𝚗 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚊 𝚏𝚕𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚖𝚊𝚌𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚎. This week, we're back talking to Kelly from Canuck Is A Slur to finish up our series on Nikolai Kibalchich, the rocket visionary who blew up Tsar Alexander II.
Support FTL on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Source:
- Nikolai Ivanovich Kibalchich: Terrorist Rocket Pioneer, Lee B Croft
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy.
A travelling clown, a socialist revolutionary, an assassin, an edgelord. Today, we talked to Kelly from Canuck is a Slur about the strange life of one of the first men to theorize manned rockets and also blew up Tsar Alexander II, Emperor of Russia. Come back for Part 2, where we cover the assassination and how he factors into space history.
Support Failure To Launch on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Source:
- Nikolai Ivanovich Kibalchich: Terrorist Rocket Pioneer, Lee B Croft
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy.
This is a preview of a bonus episode. To hear the rest of the episode and unlock more bonus content, consider supporting Failure To Launch on Patreon.
A communications satellite is a bundle of computers (all made by different people) the size of a minivan. Coordinating all these systems to work together, send info to Earth, and accept new commands is nightmarish. This week, we're joined by Jake, a software engineer at the German Space Operations Center (GSOC) to learn a little bit about spacecraft operations.
Follow along with Jake's slides
Support Failure To Launch on Patreon and unlock bonus content!
Theme song provided by DJ Danarchy
