The Mission
A True Story
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Narrated by:
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JD Jackson
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By:
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David W. Brown
About this listen
A masterful, genre-defying narrative of the most ambitious science project ever conceived: NASA’s deep-space mission to Europa—the Jovian moon where might swim the first known alien life in our solar system—powered by a motley team of obsessives and eccentrics.
When scientists discovered the first ocean beyond Earth, they had two big questions: “Is it habitable?” and “How do we get there?” To answer the first, they had to answer the second, and so began a vivacious team’s twenty-year odyssey to mount a mission to Europa, the ocean moon of Jupiter.
Standing in their way: NASA, fanatically consumed with landing robots on Mars; the White House, which never saw a science budget it couldn’t cut; Congress, fixated on going to the moon or Mars—anywhere, really, to give astronauts something to do; rivals in academia, who wanted instead to go to Saturn; and even Jupiter itself, which guards Europa in a pulsing, rippling, radiation belt—a halo of death whose conditions are like those that follow a detonated thermonuclear bomb.
The Mission, or: How a Disciple of Carl Sagan, an Ex-Motocross Racer, a Texas Tea Party Congressman, the World's Worst Typewriter Saleswoman, California Mountain People, and an Anonymous NASA Functionary Went to War with Mars, Survived an Insurgency at Saturn, Traded Blows with Washington, and Stole a Ride on an Alabama Moon Rocket to Send a Space Robot to Jupiter in Search of the Second Garden of Eden at the Bottom of an Alien Ocean Inside of an Ice World Called Europa (A True Story) is the Homeric, never-before-told story of modern space exploration, and a magnificent portrait of the inner lives of scientists who study the solar system’s mysterious outer planets. David W. Brown chronicles the remarkable saga of how Europa was won, and what it takes to get things done—down here, and up there.
Written with verve, humor, and uncanny empathy, The Mission is an exuberant masterclass in how a few determined cogs can change an entire machine.
©2020 David W. Brown (P)2020 HarperCollins PublishersListeners also enjoyed...
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Great for aspiring physicists
- By James S. on 10-06-18
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Apollo 11
- The Inside Story
- By: David Whitehouse
- Narrated by: Simon Mattacks
- Length: 8 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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In the most authoritative book ever written about Apollo, David Whitehouse reveals the true drama behind the mission, telling the story in the words of those who took part - based around exclusive interviews with the key players. This enthralling book takes us from the early rocket pioneers to the shock America received from the Soviets' launch of the first satellite, Sputnik; from the race to put the first person into space, through President Kennedy's enthusiasm and later doubts, to the astronauts' intense competition to leave the first footprint.
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Space Race Revivalism
- By Doug on 06-14-19
By: David Whitehouse
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The Last Stargazers
- The Enduring Story of Astronomy's Vanishing Explorers
- By: Emily Levesque
- Narrated by: Janet Metzger
- Length: 11 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
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Humans from the earliest civilizations were spellbound by the night sky - craning their necks each night, they used the stars to orient themselves in the large, strange world around them. Stargazing is a pursuit that continues to fascinate us: from Copernicus to Carl Sagan, astronomers throughout history have spent their lives trying to answer the biggest questions in the universe. Now, award-winning astronomer Emily Levesque shares the stories of modern-day stargazers.
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Searching for Stuff in the Darkness
- By Warpedland on 10-11-22
By: Emily Levesque
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Five Billion Years of Solitude
- The Search for Life Among the Stars
- By: Lee Billings
- Narrated by: Lee Billings
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
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Since its formation nearly five billion years ago, our planet has been the sole living world in a vast and silent universe. Now, Earth's isolation is coming to an end. Over the past two decades, astronomers have discovered thousands of "exoplanets" orbiting other stars, including some that could be similar to our own world. Studying those distant planets for signs of life will be crucial to understanding life's intricate mysteries right here on Earth. In a firsthand account of this unfolding revolution, Lee Billings draws on interviews with top researchers.
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Bloated
- By Dr A on 01-09-14
By: Lee Billings
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Rise of the Rocket Girls
- The Women Who Propelled Us, from Missiles to the Moon to Mars
- By: Nathalia Holt
- Narrated by: Erin Bennett
- Length: 9 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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In the 1940s and '50s, when the newly minted Jet Propulsion Laboratory needed quick-thinking mathematicians to calculate velocities and plot trajectories, they didn't turn to male graduates. Rather, they recruited an elite group of young women who, with only pencil, paper, and mathematical prowess, transformed rocket design, helped bring about the first American satellites, and made the exploration of the solar system possible.
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Struggles In Space Exploration
- By Sara on 06-11-16
By: Nathalia Holt
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The Department of Mad Scientists
- Inside DARPA, the Path-Breaking Government Agency You've Never Heard Of
- By: Michael Belfiore
- Narrated by: Michael Belfiore
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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The first-ever inside look at DARPA - the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency - the maverick and controversial group whose futuristic work has had amazing civilian and military applications, from the Internet to GPS to driverless cars
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meh
- By Patrick on 12-22-09
By: Michael Belfiore
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Confessions of an Alien Hunter
- A Scientist's Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence
- By: Seth Shostak
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 10 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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This engaging memoir reveals the true story of the Search for ExtraterrestrialIntelligence (SETI), and discloses what we may very soon discover. Chronicling the program’s history with insight and humor, SETI senior astronomer Seth Shostak assures us that if there is sentient life in the universe, we are within decades of picking up its signal.
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Somewhat Disappointed...
- By Tim on 11-12-10
By: Seth Shostak
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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
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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.
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Interesting book; hard to listen to
- By K. Thai on 04-12-18
By: Tim Fernholz
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Sellout
- How Washington Gave Away America's Technological Soul, and One Man's Fight to Bring It Home
- By: Victoria Bruce
- Narrated by: Tom Parks
- Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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American technological prowess used to be unrivaled. But because of globalization, and with the blessing of the US government, once proprietary materials, components, and technologies are increasingly commercialized outside the United States. Nowhere is this more dangerous than in China's monopoly of rare earth elements - materials that are essential for nearly all modern consumer goods, gadgets, and weapons systems.
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Uncovering unsung heroes of modern America
- By Ben DeNardo on 08-24-17
By: Victoria Bruce
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Beyond
- Our Future in Space
- By: Chris Impey
- Narrated by: Julie McKay
- Length: 9 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Beyond dares to imagine a fantastic future for humans in space - and then reminds us that we're already there. Human exploration has been an unceasing engine of technological progress, from the first homo sapiens to leave our African cradle to a future in which mankind promises to settle another world. Beyond tells the epic story of humanity leaving home - and how humans will soon thrive in the vast universe beyond the Earth.
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OTHER WORLDS
- By chetyarbrough.blog on 01-10-16
By: Chris Impey
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Everything All at Once
- How to Unleash Your Inner Nerd, Tap into Radical Curiosity and Solve Any Problem
- By: Bill Nye
- Narrated by: Bill Nye
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
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Everything All at Once is an exciting, inspiring call to unleash the power of the nerd mindset that exists within us all. Nye believes we'll never be able to tackle our society's biggest, most complex problems if we don't even know how to solve the small ones. Step by step, he shows his listeners the key tools behind his everything-all-at-once approach: radical curiosity, a deep desire for a better future, and a willingness to take the actions needed to make it a reality.
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Bill Nye is awesome, but skip this one
- By Evan on 08-15-17
By: Bill Nye
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The Burning Blue
- The Untold Story of Christa McAuliffe and NASA's Challenger Disaster
- By: Kevin Cook
- Narrated by: Rick Adamson
- Length: 8 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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On January 28, 1986, NASA's space shuttle Challenger exploded after blasting off from Cape Canaveral. Christa McAuliffe, America's "Teacher in Space", was instantly killed, along with the other six members of the mission. At least that's what most of us remember. Kevin Cook tells us what really happened on that ill-fated, unforgettable day. He traces the pressures - leading from NASA to the White House - that triggered the fatal order to launch on an ice-cold Florida morning.
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Not bad, but not much new either
- By Dave on 07-27-22
By: Kevin Cook
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Sally Ride
- America's First Woman in Space
- By: Lynn Sherr
- Narrated by: Pam Ward
- Length: 13 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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A member of the first astronaut class to include women, NASA chose her for the seventh shuttle mission, inspiring several generations of women. After a second flight, Ride served on the panels investigating the Challenger explosion and the Columbia disintegration that killed all aboard. In both instances, she faulted NASA's rush to meet mission deadlines and its organizational failures. She also cofounded a company promoting science and education for children, especially girls.
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Captivating
- By Jean on 06-12-14
By: Lynn Sherr
What listeners say about The Mission
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Amazon Customer
- 03-13-21
Science over Bureaucracy
Loved the science, but it was a little heavy on the bureaucracy. Really liked the narration and occasional wit.
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1 person found this helpful
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- infoshaman
- 02-02-21
I could not turn it off
Disclaimer: I know several of the people and institutions covered in this performance. This is my new favorite story of Big Science (in this case, planetary astronomy) and how it gets done. Listeners learn just enough science to inform them why the work is exciting to its practitioners and important too. Those practitioners become real people through a series of mini-biographies constructed through interviews. As for the organizational and interpersonal intrigues and battles, the author covers them with a diplomatic flair I wished I possessed. The only disappointment is that the story ends at the start of the Europa Clipper mission. One wants to know how it will turn out.....
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4 people found this helpful
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- Alysha DeShaé
- 04-21-21
Wow
I have a few favorite bits, but just in general, how amazing was this book?! It's so good!!!
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1 person found this helpful
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- Alfred E. Nash
- 04-09-21
In the room where it happens
Every space enthusiast, and everyone who wants to make something big happen should read this book. This book does a masterful job of addressing all the forces that determine outcomes: the politics, the economics, the technical capabilities, and social trends.
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- Scott Webster
- 01-30-23
A Wonderful and Important Book
This is a wonderful book! Tremendous writing. Funny. Tom Wolfe rides again. I enjoyed David’s vernacular, storytelling, character descriptions and was impressed with his insight into JPL, NASA, White House and Congressional mission and budget politics. It’s hard to believe that David is not a battle-scarred space veteran. I know a number of the folks in the saga, and David nails them. Mike Griffin, former NASA Administrator, once demanded of me—as he does a beleaguered character in the book—‘Who do we have to kill!?!’ (unfortunately, in my case, it was me). It’s a vivid window into the history behind a thrilling upcoming space adventure for all humankind.
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- Chris Reich
- 07-18-24
More About the Mission?
This incredible book needs a sequel to explain the mission and the new science that came of it. or maybe it hasn't happened yet?
Regardless, this is a terrific book and I want more!
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- rick
- 05-08-21
Interesting but a real slog
This book was really interesting and captivating about Europa and some of the things that are going on in space. It was also quite interesting to learn about how missions are determined and all of the give-and-take lobbying that goes on in NASA and the organizations involved. However the narrator is monotone and the story could’ve been about a third of the length that it really is. It felt that it just went on and on at times even though the point was made overall good to listen to because I learned a lot but man at times I was like get on with it will you LOL
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1 person found this helpful
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- ADAM C DURELL
- 02-05-23
The reality of Big Science
Some reviewers here didn’t like the presentation of this story as reducing the people and organizations involved as petty and slap-fighting. I suppose it could be interpreted that way, but the reality is that space is big, and far away, and very expensive to do anything in. Lots of people want to do lots of exciting work there, and there simply aren’t available the resources to get everything done for everyone as fast as we would like. So the work is long and hard and painstaking, and I think this book brilliantly tells the stories of otherwise unsung heroes of science and exploration. It was a fun time with ups and downs and I recommend it to anyone!
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- Bill
- 03-03-21
An excellent book covering key mission planners
I really enjoyed this book. The author goes into quite a bit of detail behind the politics and various players involved in the Europa Clipper mission.
The narration is excellent as well and you can tell the passion this author has about the topic. This makes me want to follow the latest advancements in this mission and I will definitely be following for more developments!
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2 people found this helpful
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- Patrick
- 03-04-22
Great story, terrible narration
I really enjoyed this audiobook's story; however, they're narration made it hard to get through. his voice is lovely, but he reads like a first grader. there's no emotion. there's no cadence. it seems like he pauses at the end of every line before the beginning of the next line.
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1 person found this helpful