Space is again in the headlines. E-billionaires Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk are planning to colonize Mars. President Trump wants a "Space Force" to achieve "space dominance" with expensive high-tech weapons. The space and nuclear arms control regimes are threadbare and disintegrating. Would-be asteroid collision diverters, space solar energy collectors, asteroid miners, and space geo-engineers insistently promote their Earth-changing mega-projects. Given our many looming planetary catastrophes (from extreme climate change to runaway artificial superintelligence), looking beyond the earth for solutions might seem like a sound strategy for humanity. And indeed, bolstered by a global network of fervent space advocates-and seemingly rendered plausible, even inevitable, by oceans of science fiction and the wizardly of modern cinema-space beckons as a fully hopeful path for human survival and flourishing, a positive future in increasingly dark times. But despite even basic questions of feasibility, will these many space ventures really have desirable effects, as their advocates insist? In the first book to critically assess the major consequences of space activities from their origins in the 1940s to the present and beyond, Daniel Deudney argues in Dark Skies that the major result of the "Space Age" has been to increase the likelihood of global nuclear war, a fact conveniently obscured by the failure of recognize that nuclear-armed ballistic missiles are inherently space weapons. The most important practical finding of Space Age science, also rarely emphasized, is the discovery that we live on Oasis Earth, tiny and fragile, and teeming with astounding life, but surrounded by an utterly desolate and inhospitable wilderness stretching at least many trillions of miles in all directions. As he stresses, our focus must be on Earth and nowhere else. Looking to the future, Deudney provides compelling reasons why space colonization will produce new threats to human survival and not alleviate the existing ones. That is why, he argues, we should fully relinquish the quest. Mind-bending and profound, Dark Skies challenges virtually all received wisdom about the final frontier.

This is a work that examines the many mysteries and anomalies regarding our Moon. It has been said that there is no scientific consensus of opinion regarding the Moon and its origins. A scientist also stated, By all known cosmic laws the Moon should not be there. Over 800 lbs of Moon rock have been retrieved that instead of explaining the Moon and its mysteries, have only introduced more, and are still being puzzled over. Reports of white coloured lights have been observed on the Moon and are often seen moving. They have been recorded in astronomical journals for years. Structures and symmetrical objects that look like machines have been seen and photographed and are logged in NASA files and photographs. UFO's have been seen trailing and preceding Apollo craft and have been seen in proximity to the moon by all the Apollo missions. This book deals with them all and also introduces an interesting speculative theory regarding the possible origins of our Moon.

Considerable prospecting has been done in outer space to find natural resources and mineral deposits that can be excavated. Commercial space travel and tourism have been found technically feasible and economically viable. So is the enthusiasm for demographic migration to celestial bodies. Governments are not inclined to invest in commercial development and allied ventures. So, private players are ready, having harnessed technology and mustered funds and enough guts to take risks. Thus, the commercial scene in outer space activities is brimming with anticipation. The challenge is legal. Space law brooks no sovereignty on celestial bodies; private appropriation of celestial resources is not permitted and profit accruals from commercial activities in outer space have to be shared for the benefit of all countries. Other incidental challenges are that the share of each country and the modalities of distribution are not yet in place. And there is no competent organization to ensure incumbent regulation and compliance. Humanity should not be made to wait endlessly to enjoy this bonanza from outer space. This book describes such potentialities, discusses legal implications and explores the way forward with practical suggestions for immediate action as well as long-term plans for implementation.