The Space Shuttle: 9. What is it all for?

Is human spaceflight worth the risk? It’s a time of soul searching for the whole shuttle crew. The space shuttle programme is put on hold for two years, as Nasa and the team come to terms with what happened.

Some leave but others stay on board to help. The shuttle team work to rebuild Nasa and the programme. But some ask the question: what is it all for?

Some scenes in this series use recreated sound effects.

13 Minutes Presents: The Space Shuttle is a BBC Audio Science Unit production for the BBC World Service.

Hosted by space scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock.

Theme music by Hans Zimmer and Christian Lundberg, and produced by Russell Emanuel, for Bleeding Fingers Music.

Archive:

Birth of the space shuttle, Nasa Archives, 1972

Ronald Reagan addresses nation after STS-51-L accident, Reagan Library, 1986

Richard Nixon launches Nasa's space shuttle program, CBS News, 1972

STS-26 launch coverage, BBC, 1988

Mission audio and oral histories, Nasa History Office