--- title: "3 Shuttle Quotes By Martin Rees" description: "3 Shuttle quotes by Martin Rees. Plus more from Martin Rees and more Shuttle sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e4/martin-rees-3002_after_manned-spaceflight-has-lost-its-glamour_561751.jpg" --- > [Manned spaceflight has lost its glamour - understandably so, because it hardly seems inspiring, 40 years after Apollo, for astronauts merely to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/manned-spaceflight-has-lost-its-glamour-understandably-so-because-it/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e4/martin-rees-3002_after_manned-spaceflight-has-lost-its-glamour_561751.jpg) > [It would be sad if the expertise built up during the 40 years of the U.S. and Russian manned programmes were allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/it-would-be-sad-if-the-expertise-built-up-during-the-40-years-of-the/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b2/martin-rees-3002_abandoning_it-would-be-sad-if-the-expertise-built-u_1747191.jpg) > [Ironically, it is only when disaster strikes that the shuttle makes the headlines. Its routine flights attracted less media interest than unmanned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/ironically-it-is-only-when-disaster-strikes-that-the-shuttle-makes/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee0/martin-rees-3002_attracted_ironically-it-is-only-when-disaster-stri_2286997.jpg) ## More by Martin Rees > [A monkey is unaware that atoms exist. Likewise, our brainpower may not stretch to the deepest aspects of reality. The bedrock nature of space…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/a-monkey-is-unaware-that-atoms-exist-likewise-our-brainpower-may-not/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [When scientists are asked what they are working on, their response is seldom 'Finding the origin of the universe' or 'Seeking to cure cancer.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/when-scientists-are-asked-what-they-are-working-on-their-response-is/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [The advance of science spares us from irrational dread.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/the-advance-of-science-spares-us-from-irrational-dread/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [“The Sun contains about a thousand times more mass than Jupiter. If it were cold, gravity would squeeze it a million times denser than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/the-sun-contains-about-a-thousand-times-more-mass-than-jupiter-if-it/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [“We, and the visible universe around us, may exist only because of a difference in the ninth decimal place between the numbers of quarks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/we-and-the-visible-universe-around-us-may-exist-only-because-of-a/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [Crucial to science education is hands-on involvement: showing, not just telling; real experiments and field trips and not just 'virtual reality.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/crucial-to-science-education-is-hands-on-involvement-showing-not-just/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [I have no religious belief myself, but I don't think we should fight about it. In particular, I think that we should not rubbish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/i-have-no-religious-belief-myself-but-i-don-t-think-we-should-fight/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [“More energy is needed to rise a millimetre above a neutron star's surface than to break completely free of Earth's gravity. A pen dropped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/more-energy-is-needed-to-rise-a-millimetre-above-a-neutron-star-s/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [The next humans to walk on the moon may be Chinese. Only China seems to have the resources, the dirigiste government, and the willingness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/the-next-humans-to-walk-on-the-moon-may-be-chinese-only-china-seems/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [If we ever established contact with intelligent life on another world, there would be barriers to communication. First, they would be many light years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/if-we-ever-established-contact-with-intelligent-life-on-another-world/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [There is an ever-widening gap between what science allows and what we should actually do. There are many doors science can open that should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/there-is-an-ever-widening-gap-between-what-science-allows-and-what-we/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [An insect is more complex than a star..and is a far greater challenge to understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/an-insect-is-more-complex-than-a-star-and-is-a-far-greater-challenge/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [The physicist is like someone who's watching people playing chess and, after watching a few games, he may have worked out what the moves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/the-physicist-is-like-someone-who-s-watching-people-playing-chess-and/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [We are 'nuclear waste' from the fuel that makes stars shine; indeed, each of us contains atoms whose provenance can be traced back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/we-are-nuclear-waste-from-the-fuel-that-makes-stars-shine-indeed-each/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) > [Just as there are many Jews who keep the Friday ritual in their home despite describing themselves as atheists, I am a 'tribal Christian,'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/just-as-there-are-many-jews-who-keep-the-friday-ritual-in-their-home/) [Martin Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-rees/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shuttle/martin-rees/#itemlist", "name": "3 Shuttle Quotes By Martin Rees", "numberOfItems": 3, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Manned spaceflight has lost its glamour - understandably so, because it hardly seems inspiring, 40 years after Apollo, for astronauts merely to circle the Earth in the space shuttle and the International Space Station.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Rees" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/manned-spaceflight-has-lost-its-glamour-understandably-so-because-it/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e4/martin-rees-3002_after_manned-spaceflight-has-lost-its-glamour_561751.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e4/martin-rees-3002_after_manned-spaceflight-has-lost-its-glamour_561751.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e4/martin-rees-3002_after_manned-spaceflight-has-lost-its-glamour_561751.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Manned spaceflight has lost its glamour - understandably so, because it hardly seems inspiring, 40 years…” — Martin Rees", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It would be sad if the expertise built up during the 40 years of the U.S. and Russian manned programmes were allowed to dissipate. But abandoning the shuttle, and committing to new launch vehicles and propulsion systems, is actually a prerequisite for a vibrant manned programme.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Rees" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/it-would-be-sad-if-the-expertise-built-up-during-the-40-years-of-the/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b2/martin-rees-3002_abandoning_it-would-be-sad-if-the-expertise-built-u_1747191.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b2/martin-rees-3002_abandoning_it-would-be-sad-if-the-expertise-built-u_1747191.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8b2/martin-rees-3002_abandoning_it-would-be-sad-if-the-expertise-built-u_1747191.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It would be sad if the expertise built up during the 40 years of the U.S. and Russian manned programmes were…” — Martin Rees", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ironically, it is only when disaster strikes that the shuttle makes the headlines. Its routine flights attracted less media interest than unmanned probes to the planets or the images from the Hubble Telescope. The fate of Columbia (like that of Challenger in 1986) reminded us that space is still a hazardous environment.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Rees" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-rees/ironically-it-is-only-when-disaster-strikes-that-the-shuttle-makes/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee0/martin-rees-3002_attracted_ironically-it-is-only-when-disaster-stri_2286997.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee0/martin-rees-3002_attracted_ironically-it-is-only-when-disaster-stri_2286997.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ee0/martin-rees-3002_attracted_ironically-it-is-only-when-disaster-stri_2286997.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Ironically, it is only when disaster strikes that the shuttle makes the headlines. Its routine flights…” — Martin Rees", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } } ] }, { "@type": "CollectionPage", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shuttle/martin-rees/#webpage", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shuttle/martin-rees/", "name": "Shuttle Quotes by Martin Rees", "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "mainEntity": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shuttle/martin-rees/#itemlist" }, "primaryImageOfPage": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6e4/martin-rees-3002_after_manned-spaceflight-has-lost-its-glamour_561751.jpg" }, "description": "3 Shuttle quotes by Martin Rees. Plus more from Martin Rees and more Shuttle sayings from other authors.", "breadcrumb": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shuttle/martin-rees/#breadcrumb" } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shuttle/martin-rees/#breadcrumb", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Topics", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/categories/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Shuttle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shuttle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 5, "name": "Martin Rees", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shuttle/martin-rees/" } ] }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```