Humans in Outer Space

by Codignola, Luca; Schrogl, Kai-Uwe; Lukaszczyk, Agnieszka; Peter, Nicolas

• ISBN13: 9783211874646
• ISBN10: 321187464X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2008-11-21
• Publisher: Springer Verlag

Summary

The space-faring nations are heading for the human exploration of the Moon, Mars and Near-Earth Objects. They might be soon prepared with regard to technology development. But they also need to benefit from the humanities (history, philosophy, anthropology), the arts as well as the social sciences (political science, economics, law) for mastering this immense endeavour.The European Science Foundation (ESF), the European Space Agency (ESA), and the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI) have organised the first comprehensive trans-disciplinary dialogue on humans in outer space. It investigates the human quest for odysseys beyond Earth's atmosphere and reflects on the implications of the findings of extraterrestrial life.The articles in this book present, for the first time, a comprehensive analysis by all relevant disciplines responding to the questions of how, why and with what goal humans explore outer space. More than twenty experts shed light on the thrilling perspectives space exploration provides for science, technology, politics and culture.

Table of Contents

Preface: humans and space - space and humans	p. v
Introduction: towards a new vision for humans in outer space	p. xv
List of acronyms	p. xx
List of figures	p. xxiii
Setting the scene
Summary	p. 3
Micro-organisms and extraterrestrial travel	p. 6
Future Encounters: learning from the past?	p. 14
Discovery, encounter, meeting, contact: old wine in new bottles	p. 14
Contact: the ideological issue	p. 16
Contact: the biological issue	p. 17
Has history prepared us for contact?	p. 19
Are we alone? Searching for life in the universe and its creation	p. 22
Introduction	p. 22
The ubiquity of life	p. 22
Searches for life in the solar system	p. 24
Extrasolar planets	p. 26
Confinement to the solar system	p. 28
Communication with other civilizations	p. 30
Summary	p. 33
What's the story, mother? Some thoughts on Science Fiction Film and Space Travel	p. 35
Tales about the future	p. 35
Historical development	p. 36
Recent examples	p. 40
Appendix: list of evaluated film examples	p. 41
Aiming ahead: next generation visions for the next 50 years in space	p. 44
The past and the future	p. 44
Aiming ahead	p. 45
Ensuring the survival interests of humanity	p. 46
Conclusions	p. 51
Can we compare?
Summary	p. 57
Inter caetera and outer space: some rules of engagement	p. 59
Introduction	p. 59
Regulating the Ocean Sea	p. 60
The universal human community	p. 62
The world divided	p. 64
Hugo Grotius and the protestant response	p. 65
The Papal world order in secular garb	p. 66
Conclusion	p. 67
Celestial bodies: Lucy in the sky	p. 69
Introduction	p. 69
Zooming in and out	p. 69
Fetal space	p. 70
The universe within	p. 72
Hunting and gathering genes	p. 73
Elementary structures	p. 75
Mappings	p. 76
Out of Africa, out of Earth	p. 77
Human evolution	p. 78
The phenomenology of space	p. 79
Conclusion	p. 80
Why we had better drop analogies when discussing the role of humans in space	p. 82
Analogies used in the early space age to define the role of humans in space	p. 82
Explorers of new worlds	p. 82
Man as attendant at a staging point in space	p. 86
The scientist in the field or in the laboratory	p. 86
The factory worker	p. 86
Modern analogies for the role of humans in space	p. 87
How is the role of humans affected by the cost/risk aspect of space flight?	p. 88
Conclusion	p. 88
"Spatiality" - Space as a source of inspiration
Summary	p. 93
Missing the important: how we talk and write about space	p. 94
Introduction	p. 94
The Motto's Mission: a case study	p. 95
Conclusions	p. 104
Towards a new inspiring era of collaborative space exploration	p. 107
Introduction	p. 107
How are current space exploration plans different from earlier space endeavors?	p. 107
Benefits of international cooperation	p. 114
Metaprinciples for space exploration	p. 115
Inspirational potential of international cooperation	p. 115
Conclusions	p. 117
First Odyssey: Humans in Earth orbit: what effect does it have?
Summary	p. 121
With the eyes of an astronaut	p. 124
The discovery	p. 124
The view from above	p. 125
Where do we go next?	p. 126
Human spaceflight, technology development and innovation	p. 128
The first effect - inspiration from space	p. 128
The second effect - supporting life on Earth	p. 128
Reality	p. 129
Technology and innovation	p. 129
What space has to offer	p. 130
Conclusions	p. 132
Human-machine cooperation in space environments	p. 135
Introduction	p. 135
Human-machine cooperation	p. 137
Lessons learned from experience: two case studies	p. 138
Findings and conclusions	p. 145
Space law in the age of the International Space Station	p. 148
Introduction	p. 148
Towards an International Space Station	p. 148
The novelty of the International Space Station	p. 151
Space law and the International Space Station	p. 153
What comes next?	p. 157
Second Odyssey: Humans in space exploration: what effects will it have?
Summary	p. 165
Humans - more than the better robots for exploration?	p. 167
Introduction	p. 167
Scientific exploration	p. 167
Real exploration	p. 169
Conclusion	p. 170
Humans leaving the Earth - a philosopher's view	p. 171
Human spaceflight as a matter of culture and national vision	p. 175
Introduction	p. 175
The utility of spaceflight	p. 175
The trans-utilitarian perspective	p. 175
Arguments at national level	p. 178
Remaining ethical questions	p. 179
Conclusion	p. 180
The need of a legal framework for exploration	p. 182
Introduction	p. 182
The term "exploration" in the Corpus Iuris Spatialis	p. 183
The non-appropriation principle	p. 185
Protection of the environment	p. 186
The use of nuclear power sources	p. 189
International cooperation	p. 190
Some trends in the evolution of the law	p. 192
Third Odyssey: Humans migrating the Earth: how will it affect human thought?
Summary	p. 199
Mars as a place to live? Past, present and future	p. 202
Introduction	p. 202
Past Mars	p. 204
Present Mars	p. 205
Future Mars	p. 208
Philosophical and religious implications of extraterrestrial intelligent life	p. 210
The big issue	p. 210
Philosophical issues	p. 211
Religious issues	p. 213
How should we manage such a discovery?	p. 216
Appendix: Managing ET's technology	p. 217
ET culture	p. 220
The alien de-exoticized	p. 220
Galaxies of space discourse	p. 221
Modeling an ET diplomacy	p. 222
The ET effect upon the social	p. 224
The Vienna vision on humans in outer space	p. 227
About the authors	p. 234
Acknowledgements	p. 246
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