Failure To Launch

While most of NASA was focused on the Apollo Moon Program, a separate division was hard at work building then deliberately blowing up nuclear rocket cores all over Nevada. This week, we’re talking to train and nuclear knower Scooter about the weird and convoluted story of American nuclear rockets. 
Support FTL on Patreon to unlock bonus content and join our Discord community!
SOURCES:
- Nuclear propulsion: A vital technology for the exploration of Mars and the planets beyond, NASA 
- The NERVA Nuclear Rocket Reactor Program, W H Esselman
FTL theme song by DJ Danarchy

A secret military space station, a rookie crew, a flaky autopilot, insufficient batteries, a freak winter storm, and a frozen lake. We’re joined by space and KSP youtuber Matt Lowne to talk about Soyuz-23, the only water touchdown of a Soviet spacecraft and how it very nearly killed its entire crew. 
Check out Matt’s videos here!
Find our merch store here
Support FTL on Patreon to unlock bonus content and join our Discord community
SOURCES:
- Soyuz: A Universal Spacecraft, Rex Hall
- Salyut-5: The Last Military Lab, Anatoly Zak
- https://www.astronomy.com/space-exploration/soyuz-23-how-two-cosmonauts-almost-died-after-landing-back-on-earth/ 
FTL 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, support Failure To Launch on Patreon at any tier.
In the wake of Operation:REVIVAL, House Kurita embarked on a crash WarShip development program to try and match the naval superiority of the Clans. Today, we are joined by Dr. Randolph P. Checkers, one of the Periphery’s finest historians, to discuss one product of this program, the ill-fated Tatsumaki Class destroyer.

The guy who made the Ultima games owns a space tank. We’re back with auto journalist and podcaster Victoria Scott to keep talking Lunokhod. In Part 2, we go over the journey of Lunokhod 2, lives saved in the Chernobyl Disaster, and the post-Soviet desperation that led to a Moon rover being sold for $68,500. 
Check out Victoria’s work here and listen to Tran Girlismo!
Find our merch store here
Support FTL on Patreon to unlock bonus content and join our Discord community
SOURCES:
- Unmanned Missions toward the Moon, Anatoly Zak
- Soviet and Russian Lunar Exploration, Brian Harvey
- Tank on the Moon, 2007
FTL theme song by DJ Danarchy

In a desperate bid to one-up the American Apollo missions, the Soviets built nuclear Moon tanks. We’re joined by auto journalist and podcaster Victoria Scott for a series on the Soviet Lunokhod rovers. In Part 1, we talk about the three-pronged Soviet lunar program, how they built the first space tank, and how you can stay warm in winter with a kilo of Polonium-210. 
Check out Victoria’s work here and listen to Tran Girlismo!
Find our merch store here
Support FTL on Patreon to unlock bonus content and join our Discord community
SOURCES:
- Unmanned Missions toward the Moon, Anatoly Zak
- Soviet and Russian Lunar Exploration, Brian Harvey
- Tank on the Moon, 2007
FTL theme song by DJ Danarchy