ABSTRACT
As human emanations beyond Earth become more sustained and the option of pursuing multi-planetary futures becomes more concrete, the premises, promises, values, rationales, meanings, modalities, impacts, and implications of outer space exploration and even colonization – for specific humans, for humanity at large, for being-human itself, for the future of Earth and other celestial bodies – call for thematic philosophical consideration with increasing urgency. This chapter articulates historical, conceptual, and thematic elements of outer space philosophy, highlighting the contemporary relevance of this nascent research field. It then introduces the volume and the chapters that constitute it.
