Designing a dynamic utopia of our future in space
- Paper number
IAC-08.D3.1.8
- Author
Dr. Sarah Jane Pell, ARTi Aquabatics Research Team, Australia
- Year
2008
- Abstract
With the many varied missions heralding from the 2004 US Vision for Space Exploration, the call to recognize the ethical, political and societal implications of such ambitions is a latent yet omnipresent challenge for the general public. Considering this period in history as a renewed opportunity for architecting superior systems and infrastructures, technologies, philosophies and laws than that of our current Earth-based supports, this paper explores the kind of framework that humanity will need to manage the responsibilities of many, concurrent lunar mission ambitions and the practical stepping-stones to best prepare for a successful future in space.
The 2006 Luna Gaia: closed loop habitat for the Moon ISU/NASA Ames study recommended the establishment of an International Scientific Working Group (ISWG) for all future space activities and an Inter-governmental Protections Taskforce (IGPT) for the Earth-based management of these jurisdictions. By discussing these methods as case-study solutions which propose to align exploration infrastructures, scientific agendas, cultural sensitivities, commercial interests, time lines and the visions driving them, each concept is critiqued in terms of the capability for innovative societal, political and ethical modality towards a dynamic utopia. The purpose is to introduce the theory, requirements and societal-design concepts for systems in extreme and special environments, including outer space and its conceptualisations, towards a philosophy that enables humankind, and its policy makers, to garner new insights and knowledge for mission planning and wider reaching solutions to terrestrial concerns.
"To ensure the fruits of all space exploration, science and discovery are directed an ethically appropriate and considered manner for the ’common heritage of mankind’, we must examine the motivations and hesitations of the individuals and states involved in space activities as well as those on the peripheries of space: particularly nations without the capital to participate and benefit first-hand. Particular attention must be paid to these matters at the outset in order to plan effectively." Luna Gaia, 2006.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
IAC-08.D3.1.8.pdf (🔒 authorized access only).
To get the manuscript, please contact IAF Secretariat.