The Routledge Handbook of Social Studies of Outer Space

Book excerpt: "The Routledge Handbook of Social Studies of Outer Space offers a state-of-the-art overview of contemporary social and cultural research on outer space. With over thirty contributions by leading researchers across a variety of disciplines, it explores the question of why and how to study outer space and provides scholars, practitioners and upper-level students with novel perspectives and critical interventions on a wide range of debates. The volume reflects on the lineages of conceptualizations and studies of outer space and poses key questions about the crafting of futures in relation to space. The chapters address themes including: the study of the human body and consciousness; the various infrastructures, networks and systems that enable and sustain space exploration; the fundamental question of life in outer space both as it pertains to astrobiology, SETI, and the study of human health in spaceflight. The Handbook is a call to attend more carefully to the ways in which we engage critically with outer space, both empirically, affectively and theoretically, while characterizing current research practices and outlining future research agendas"--