-
Ignition!
- An Informal History of Liquid Rocket Propellants
- Narrated by: Jonathan Todd Ross
- Length: 9 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Release date: 05-15-18
- Language: English
- Publisher: Random House Audio
Regular price: $28.00
People who bought this also bought...
-
The Perfectionists
- How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World
- By: Simon Winchester
- Narrated by: Simon Winchester
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 481
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 434
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 423
The New York Times best-selling author traces the development of technology from the Industrial Age to the Digital Age to explore the single component crucial to advancement - precision - in a superb history that is both an homage and a warning for our future.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Somewhat less than perfect
- By enya keshet on 06-19-18
-
Chasing New Horizons
- Inside the Epic First Mission to Pluto
- By: Alan Stern, David Grinspoon
- Narrated by: Alan Stern, David Grinspoon
- Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 178
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 163
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 164
On July 14, 2015, something amazing happened. More than three billion miles from Earth, a small NASA spacecraft called New Horizons screamed past Pluto at more than 32,000 miles per hour, focusing its instruments on the long-mysterious icy worlds of the Pluto system, and then, just as quickly, continued on its journey out into the beyond.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Great Topic ... not great coverage
- By Stuff Reviewer on 06-19-18
-
Energy
- A Human History
- By: Richard Rhodes
- Narrated by: Jacques Roy
- Length: 11 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 166
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 152
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 150
Through an unforgettable cast of characters, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Rhodes explains how wood gave way to coal and coal made room for oil, as we now turn to natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy. Rhodes looks back on five centuries of progress, through such influential figures as Queen Elizabeth I, King James I, Benjamin Franklin, Herman Melville, John D. Rockefeller, and Henry Ford.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Does not disappoint.
- By Parts on 07-22-18
-
The Space Barons
- By: Christian Davenport
- Narrated by: Will Collyer
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 359
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 317
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 315
The Space Barons is the story of a group of billionaire entrepreneurs who are pouring their fortunes into the epic resurrection of the American space program. Nearly a half century after Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, these Space Barons - most notably Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, along with Richard Branson and Paul Allen - are using Silicon Valley-style innovation to dramatically lower the cost of space travel and send humans even further than NASA has gone.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An Incredible Modern Story Well Told
- By Greg on 04-06-18
-
The Case for Mars
- The Plan to Settle the Red Planet and Why We Must
- By: Robert Zubrin, Richard Wagner, Arthur C. Clarke - Foreword
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 14 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 53
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 46
Since the beginning of human history Mars has been an alluring dream - the stuff of legends, gods, and mystery. The planet most like ours, it has still been thought impossible to reach, let alone explore and inhabit. Now with the advent of a revolutionary new plan, all this has changed. Leading space exploration authority Robert Zubrin has crafted a daring new blueprint, Mars Direct, presented here with engaging anecdotes. The Case for Mars is not a vision for the far future or one that will cost us impossible billions.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Compelling
- By Michael D. Busch on 04-16-18
-
Truth, Lies, and O-Rings
- Inside the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster
- By: Allan J. McDonald, James R. Hansen - contributor
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 26 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 8
On a cold January morning in 1986, NASA launched the Space Shuttle Challenger, despite warnings against doing so by many individuals including Allan McDonald. The fiery destruction of Challenger on live television moments after launch remains an indelible image in the nation's collective memory. In Truth, Lies, and O-Rings, McDonald, a skilled engineer and executive, relives the tragedy from where he stood at Launch Control Center.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A great look into what happened
- By Daniel L Carmony on 08-16-18
-
The Perfectionists
- How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World
- By: Simon Winchester
- Narrated by: Simon Winchester
- Length: 11 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 481
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 434
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 423
The New York Times best-selling author traces the development of technology from the Industrial Age to the Digital Age to explore the single component crucial to advancement - precision - in a superb history that is both an homage and a warning for our future.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Somewhat less than perfect
- By enya keshet on 06-19-18
-
Chasing New Horizons
- Inside the Epic First Mission to Pluto
- By: Alan Stern, David Grinspoon
- Narrated by: Alan Stern, David Grinspoon
- Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 178
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 163
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 164
On July 14, 2015, something amazing happened. More than three billion miles from Earth, a small NASA spacecraft called New Horizons screamed past Pluto at more than 32,000 miles per hour, focusing its instruments on the long-mysterious icy worlds of the Pluto system, and then, just as quickly, continued on its journey out into the beyond.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Great Topic ... not great coverage
- By Stuff Reviewer on 06-19-18
-
Energy
- A Human History
- By: Richard Rhodes
- Narrated by: Jacques Roy
- Length: 11 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 166
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 152
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 150
Through an unforgettable cast of characters, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Rhodes explains how wood gave way to coal and coal made room for oil, as we now turn to natural gas, nuclear power, and renewable energy. Rhodes looks back on five centuries of progress, through such influential figures as Queen Elizabeth I, King James I, Benjamin Franklin, Herman Melville, John D. Rockefeller, and Henry Ford.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Does not disappoint.
- By Parts on 07-22-18
-
The Space Barons
- By: Christian Davenport
- Narrated by: Will Collyer
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 359
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 317
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 315
The Space Barons is the story of a group of billionaire entrepreneurs who are pouring their fortunes into the epic resurrection of the American space program. Nearly a half century after Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, these Space Barons - most notably Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, along with Richard Branson and Paul Allen - are using Silicon Valley-style innovation to dramatically lower the cost of space travel and send humans even further than NASA has gone.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An Incredible Modern Story Well Told
- By Greg on 04-06-18
-
The Case for Mars
- The Plan to Settle the Red Planet and Why We Must
- By: Robert Zubrin, Richard Wagner, Arthur C. Clarke - Foreword
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 14 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 53
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 46
Since the beginning of human history Mars has been an alluring dream - the stuff of legends, gods, and mystery. The planet most like ours, it has still been thought impossible to reach, let alone explore and inhabit. Now with the advent of a revolutionary new plan, all this has changed. Leading space exploration authority Robert Zubrin has crafted a daring new blueprint, Mars Direct, presented here with engaging anecdotes. The Case for Mars is not a vision for the far future or one that will cost us impossible billions.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Compelling
- By Michael D. Busch on 04-16-18
-
Truth, Lies, and O-Rings
- Inside the Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster
- By: Allan J. McDonald, James R. Hansen - contributor
- Narrated by: Jonathan Yen
- Length: 26 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 8
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 8
On a cold January morning in 1986, NASA launched the Space Shuttle Challenger, despite warnings against doing so by many individuals including Allan McDonald. The fiery destruction of Challenger on live television moments after launch remains an indelible image in the nation's collective memory. In Truth, Lies, and O-Rings, McDonald, a skilled engineer and executive, relives the tragedy from where he stood at Launch Control Center.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A great look into what happened
- By Daniel L Carmony on 08-16-18
-
The Making of the Atomic Bomb
- 25th Anniversary Edition
- By: Richard Rhodes
- Narrated by: Holter Graham
- Length: 37 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,727
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,601
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,593
Here for the first time, in rich human, political, and scientific detail, is the complete story of how the bomb was developed, from the turn-of-the-century discovery of the vast energy locked inside the atom to the dropping of the first bombs on Japan. Few great discoveries have evolved so swiftly - or have been so misunderstood. From the theoretical discussions of nuclear energy to the bright glare of Trinity, there was a span of hardly more than 25 years.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wow... Grade A+ ... Exceptional.
- By Amazon Customer on 03-15-16
-
Go, Flight!
- The Unsung Heroes of Mission Control, 1965–1992 (Outward Odyssey: A People's History of Spaceflight)
- By: Rick Houston, J. Milt Heflin
- Narrated by: John Gagnepain
- Length: 14 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 62
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 58
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 58
At first glance, it looks like just another auditorium in just another government building. But among the talented men (and later women) who worked in mission control, the room located on the third floor of Building 30—at what is now Johnson Space Center—would become known by many as "the Cathedral." These members of the space program were the brightest of their generations, making split-second decisions that determined the success or failure of a mission.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Good book, with some interesting insights
- By Joe on 12-29-17
-
Accessory to War
- The Unspoken Alliance Between Astrophysics and the Military
- By: Neil deGrasse Tyson, Avis Lang
- Narrated by: Courtney B. Vance, Neil deGrasse Tyson
- Length: 18 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 178
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 165
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 164
In this fascinating foray into the centuries-old relationship between science and military power, acclaimed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson and writer-researcher Avis Lang examine how the methods and tools of astrophysics have been enlisted in the service of war. "The overlap is strong, and the knowledge flows in both directions", say the authors, because astrophysicists and military planners care about many of the same things: multi-spectral detection, ranging, tracking, imaging, high ground, nuclear fusion, and access to space. Tyson and Lang call it a "curiously complicit" alliance.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Inspiring, educational, patriotic.
- By Kevin on 09-17-18
-
Rocket Billionaires
- Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and the New Space Race
- By: Tim Fernholz
- Narrated by: Erin Moon
- Length: 10 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 87
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 75
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 76
For the larger-than-life personalities now staking their fortunes on the development of rocket ships, the new race to explore space could be a dead end, a lucrative opportunity - or the key to humanity's salvation. Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos take center stage in this fast-paced narrative as they attempt to disrupt the space economy, feed their own egos, and maybe even save the world.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting book; hard to listen to
- By K. Thai on 04-12-18
-
Skunk Works
- A Personal Memoir of My Years of Lockheed
- By: Ben R. Rich, Leo Janos
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 12 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 3,386
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3,082
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3,078
From the development of the U-2 to the Stealth fighter, the never-before-told story behind America's high-stakes quest to dominate the skies. Skunk Works is the true story of America's most secret and successful aerospace operation. As recounted by Ben Rich, the operation's brilliant boss for nearly two decades, the chronicle of Lockheed's legendary Skunk Works is a drama of Cold War confrontations and Gulf War air combat, of extraordinary feats of engineering and human achievement against fantastic odds.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Nice work for a techie or aero interested
- By Nar on 09-19-15
-
Breaking the Chains of Gravity
- The Story of Spaceflight Before NASA
- By: Amy Shira Teitel
- Narrated by: Laurence Bouvard
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 393
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 375
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 373
NASA's history is a familiar story, culminating with the agency successfully landing men on the moon in 1969. But NASA's prehistory is a rarely told tale, one that is largely absent from the popular space-age literature but that gives the context behind the incredible lunar program. America's space agency wasn't created in a vacuum; it was assembled from preexisting parts, drawing together some of the best minds the non-Soviet world had to offer.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
An enthralling and concise look at the birth of the space race!
- By Jonathan on 10-28-15
-
Energy and Civilization
- A History
- By: Vaclav Smil
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 20 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 35
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 29
In this monumental history, Vaclav Smil provides a comprehensive account of how energy has shaped society, from pre-agricultural foraging societies through today's fossil fuel-driven civilization and offers listeners a magisterial overview of humanity's energy eras.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Not a good format for this book
- By C. Hoogeboom on 05-19-18
-
Bringing Columbia Home
- The Untold Story of a Lost Space Shuttle and Her Crew
- By: Michael D. Leinbach, Jonathan H. Ward, Robert Crippen - foreward, and others
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Danny Campbell
- Length: 10 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
On February 1, 2003, Columbia disintegrated on reentry before the nation's eyes, and all seven astronauts aboard were lost. Author Mike Leinbach was a key leader in the search and recovery effort as NASA, FEMA, the FBI, the US Forest Service, and dozens more federal, state, and local agencies combed an area of rural east Texas the size of Rhode Island for every piece of the shuttle and her crew they could find. Assisted by hundreds of volunteers, it would become the largest ground search operation in US history.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Consider What You’re Looking For
- By Jeff Scott on 05-11-18
-
Chasing the Demon
- A Secret History of the Quest for the Sound Barrier, and the Band of American Aces Who Conquered It
- By: Dan Hampton
- Narrated by: John Pruden
- Length: 8 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 39
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 36
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 36
In the aftermath of World War II, the United States accelerated the development of technologies that would give it an advantage over the Soviet Union. Airpower, combined with nuclear weapons, offered a formidable check on Soviet aggression. In 1947, the United States Air Force was established. Meanwhile, scientists and engineers were pioneering a revolutionary new type of aircraft which could do what no other machine had ever done: reach mach 1 - a speed faster than the movement of sound - which pilots called "the demon."
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Definitely not “The Flight”
- By Anonymous User on 09-18-18
-
Failure Is Not an Option
- Mission Control from Mercury to Apollo 13 and Beyond
- By: Gene Kranz
- Narrated by: Danny Campbell
- Length: 18 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 2,143
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,973
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,970
Gene Kranz was present at the creation of America's manned space program and was a key player in it for three decades. As a flight director in NASA's Mission Control, Kranz witnessed firsthand the making of history. He participated in the space program from the early days of the Mercury program to the last Apollo mission, and beyond. He endured the disastrous first years when rockets blew up and the United States seemed to fall further behind the Soviet Union in the space race.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A wonderful story told beautifully.
- By Albert Sjoberg (PA) on 06-05-15
-
The Interstellar Age
- The Story of the NASA Men and Women Who Flew the Forty-Year Voyager Mission
- By: Jim Bell
- Narrated by: Jim Bell
- Length: 7 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 225
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 210
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 209
The story of the men and women who drove the Voyager spacecraft mission, told by a scientist who was there from the beginning. The Voyager spacecraft are our farthest-flung emissaries--11.3 billion miles away from the crew who built and still operate them decades after their launch.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Exciting, Inspiring, and interesting.
- By JoR on 03-19-15
-
Chernobyl
- The History of a Nuclear Catastrophe
- By: Serhii Plokhy
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 14 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 79
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 74
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 74
On the morning of April 26, 1986, Europe witnessed the worst nuclear disaster in history: the explosion of a reactor at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Soviet Ukraine. Dozens died of radiation poisoning, fallout contaminated half the continent, and thousands fell ill. In Chernobyl, Serhii Plokhy draws on new sources to tell the dramatic stories of the firefighters, scientists, and soldiers who heroically extinguished the nuclear inferno. He lays bare the flaws of the Soviet nuclear industry....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great information on Chernobyl and the USSR
- By APUser on 06-22-18
Publisher's Summary
Ignition! is the inside story of the Cold War era search for a rocket propellant that could be trusted to take man into space. A favorite of Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, listeners will want to tune into this "really good book on rocket[s]," available for the first time in audio.
Ignition! is the story of the search for a rocket propellant which could be trusted to take man into space. This search was a hazardous enterprise carried out by rival labs who worked against the known laws of nature, with no guarantee of success or safety.
Acclaimed scientist and sci-fi author John Drury Clark writes with irreverent and eyewitness immediacy about the development of the explosive fuels strong enough to negate the relentless restraints of gravity. The resulting volume is as much a memoir as a work of history, sharing a behind-the-scenes view of an enterprise that eventually took men to the moon, missiles to the planets, and satellites to outer space. A classic work in the history of science, listeners will want to get their hands on this influential classic, available for the first time in decades.
What members say
Average Customer Ratings
Overall
-
4.5 out of 5 stars
-
5 Stars71
-
4 Stars27
-
3 Stars7
-
2 Stars4
-
1 Stars1
Performance
-
4.5 out of 5 stars
-
5 Stars72
-
4 Stars18
-
3 Stars2
-
2 Stars1
-
1 Stars1
Story
-
4.5 out of 5 stars
-
5 Stars62
-
4 Stars20
-
3 Stars6
-
2 Stars4
-
1 Stars2
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Joe K
- 09-19-18
Fun and informative.
The author has a fun writing style. It's an interesting look back at the evolution of rocket propellant, even if you are not great at chemistry.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Greg
- 09-15-18
A fascinating look into high end chemistry
One for the chemistry buff!!!
Makes me feel like I wasted my youth creating ridiculously expensive precious metal acids, when I could have been making rocket fuels, oh to bed few decades older.
A fascinating look at chemistry & chemical engineering back when not everything wasn't already known and people risked life & limb for their knowledge.
Bravo to the narrator, so many devilishly complicated chemical names delivered flawlessly, if he doesn't have a degree with a chemical background ....
OK, to be fair if you don't have a science or engineering degree this might be heavy going, but if you do it reminds you of the first time you blew things up.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- joseph
- US
- 08-30-18
fun science
An interesting and rare approach to practical science and a fun read to boot. enjoy
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- C. Tipton
- Houston, Texas USA
- 07-03-18
An audiobook only flawed by the unavoidable.
In audiobook format, it should many of the complaints - poor scanning and the like - that going the print book. it is read with spirit and clarity. Its only downfall is an artifact of the type of book and the audio format, that is, reading out chemical and mathematical formula.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Andrew J.
- 09-29-18
you don't need to know chemistry.
hilarious anecdotes about explosions and government contracting. if you don't know any chemistry at the start you'll know some at the end.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jan Westin
- 08-22-18
Verry interesting for the knowledgehungry engineer
Loved the detaining level and the humorous mix. Well enjoyed! Not for the faint of heart looking for an easy read tho.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Thomas E Carman
- Somerset, NJ, United States
- 08-19-18
A very entertaining read
You will rarely find a tale of science and engineering told with such wit and humor.
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Amber
- 08-11-18
A riveting tale...
A riveting tale accessible to the layman of the history of rocketry. A very well written book, read by a phenomenal narrator.
-
Overall3 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story2 out of 5 stars
- Billy
- 07-20-18
A Bit Dated
A lot of technical information is presented, but I didn't realise it was 40 yearsold.
1 of 2 people found this review helpful
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Warren
- 06-08-18
very interesting dive into rocketry history
this was a very interesting dive into rocketry history, covering as many fuels as possible.