Apollo–Soyuz: The End of the Space Race

The Abbasid Caliphate stood as a vibrant center of commerce, technology, and learning from the 8th to the 13th centuries. At the heart of this Islamic dynasty was the House of Wisdom. It was an extraordinary institute that drew scholars from across the known world, which made Bag ...  Show more

Sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine is the nation of Moldova. As with many landlocked countries in Central and Eastern Europe, it has a long history as a crossroads for armies and people. In addition to serving as a crossroads of civilizations, it has also served as a buffer b ...  Show more

On 12th April 1981, the space shuttle Columbia made history becoming the first ever reusable space craft to fly into orbit. It marked the start of a 30-year shuttle programme which revolutionised the history of manned space exploration. Using NASA and BBC archive we tell the stor ...  Show more

Book your tickets now to come see us at the DS Podcast Festival Friday 1st April in Ostend, Belgium: https://www.universe.com/users/de-standaard-4NZ5BV, and buy your Damp Cloth Utopia merch at spreadthatfire.com. The 4th October 1957 was a big day. The space race had been won. Th ...  Show more

In Spring 1961, the Space Race between the US and Soviet Union was well underway. Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first person in Space in April and the Americans knew his achievement had to be matched. Alan Shepard was chosen as the man for the job. Jay Gallentine t ...

JFK said that nothing in the 1960s was "...more impressive to mankind, or more important for the long-range exploration of space..." than getting a man to the moon and back safely. As the Apollo 11 flight neared, the entire nation waited, enraptured. But back in the USSR, the ...