The dawn of a new space age?

Nasa's space shuttle programme has drawn to a close. And with nothing to replace it, America is turning to the private sector to come up with alternatives. Emily Hohler reports on the latest advances in space technology, and looks at how to invest in the future of space exploration.

Why is the shuttle being scrapped?

Building, operating and testing America's space shuttles has cost around $290bn over the course of the 30-year programme, a huge proportion of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) budget. Critics question its value for money, particularly given the state of America's finances. Over the past two decades robots have flown around Jupiter and Saturn, rovers have explored Mars, and the Hubble telescope has captured extraordinary images, but the accomplishments of the shuttle have been harder to quantify. The excitement of the Apollo moon landing has never been repeated and the losses of Columbia and Challenger, along with 14 astronauts, dented the public's confidence in Nasa.

Subscribe to MoneyWeek

Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Get 6 issues free
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/mw70aro6gl1676370748.jpg

Sign up to Money Morning

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Sign up
Explore More
Emily Hohler
Politics editor

Emily has worked as a journalist for more than thirty years and was formerly Assistant Editor of MoneyWeek, which she helped launch in 2000. Prior to this, she was Deputy Features Editor of The Times and a Commissioning Editor for The Independent on Sunday and The Daily Telegraph. She has written for most of the national newspapers including The Times, the Daily and Sunday Telegraph, The Evening Standard and The Daily Mail, She interviewed celebrities weekly for The Sunday Telegraph and wrote a regular column for The Evening Standard. As Political Editor of MoneyWeek, Emily has covered subjects from Brexit to the Gaza war.

Aside from her writing, Emily trained as Nutritional Therapist following her son's diagnosis with Type 1 diabetes in 2011 and now works as a practitioner for Nature Doc, offering one-to-one consultations and running workshops in Oxfordshire.