ABSTRACT

Space travel is a journey into an environment that is extremely hazardous for human beings. The history of manned space travel is not only a history of technological achievements, but also a revolutionary history of human interaction in a potentially high risk environment. The men and women in space are not constantly teetering on the edge of catastrophe. On the International Space Station (ISS), resource management 'on all fronts' has become the most important task for the crews. The permanent presence in space is essential for the 'earthly' support of scientific research in space and for all future ventures into the outer sphere. This combination of ideological competition between the space travelling nations, the general atmosphere of exploration, and the continually expanding possibilities due to the technical developments of space travel enthusiasts like von Braun and Korolev carried the pioneers of space travel all the way to the moon and back.