This book produces convincing evidence that exploiting the potential of space could help solve many environmental and social issues affecting our planet, such as pollution, overcrowding, resource depletion and conflicts, economic inequality, social unrest, economic instability and unemployment. It also touches on the legal problems that will be encountered with the implementation of the new technologies and new laws that will need to be enacted and new organizations that will need to be formed to deal with these changes.

This proposition for a space economy is not science fiction, but well within the remit of current or under development technologies. Numerous technologies are described and put together to form a coherent and feasible road map that, if implemented, could lead humankind towards a brighter future.

Written at an accessible level for the lay reader Offers a feasible strategy for a self-sustaining, space-based infrastructure for the exploitation of space resources Provides a road map of technologies that can be used to establish such a large-scale space economy

Autorentext

Giuseppe De Chiara: Giuseppe De Chiara was born in Naples (Italy) in 1968. He is an accomplished aerospace professional who has been employed in the European space industry for 25 years. He began his career as a designer of Parabolic Flights facilities designer and later transitioned to the ISS Program as a Training Manager and Operations Leader. De Chiara currently works as a System Engineer and Technical Manager. His professional life as an engineer and architect has nourished his early passion for illustration. The Illustration has deepened his professional experience. He has illustrated several articles since 2010 with the noted aerospace author Dwayne A. Day. Additionally, he has been a coauthor of four scientific papers dating from 2003 to 2012. De Chiara has contributed with his artworks to several aerospace books like the ones by the late Steve Pace. In 2016 Giuseppe De Chiara teamed up with Michael H. Gorn to realize several books as the acclaimed "Spacecraft: 100 Iconic Rockets, Shuttles, and Satellites That Put Us in Space" released in 2018 and the book "X-Planes from the X-1 to the X-60: An Illustrated History" released by Springer in 2021. Davide Sivolella: Davide Sivolella is an aerospace engineer based in the UK with professional experience spanning the airline and civil aircraft manufacturing industries. Fascinated by flight from an early age—particularly by spacecraft—he earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Aerospace Engineering from the Polytechnic of Turin (Italy), followed by a PgCert in Advanced Mechanical Engineering from Cranfield University (UK) and a Professional Diploma in Aviation Finance and Leasing from Dublin City College (Ireland). Born in July 1981, just months after Columbia’s maiden flight, he developed a special fondness for the Space Shuttle program. This passion led him to author several well-received books published by Springer-Praxis, including To Orbit and Back Again, The Space Shuttle Program: Technologies and Accomplishments, and The Untold Stories of the Space Shuttle Program. He also wrote Space Mining and Manufacturing: Off-World Resources and Revolutionary Engineering Techniques, offering a compelling vision of how space-based mining and manufacturing could become key to Earth’s economic future. Beyond his professional pursuits, Davide is an avid reader with interests spanning cosmology to philosophy, an enthusiastic cook, and a keen traveller who enjoys exploring new places worldwide.

Inhalt

1. Space Exploration: What For?.- 2. Extraterrestrial Resources and Where to Find Them.- 3. Off-World Mining.- 4. Processing of Space Resources.- 5. The Art of Manufacturing in Space.- 6. Building Factories in Space.- 7. Making it Happen.- 8. For the Benefit of Humankind.- About the Author.- Index.