Geographies of Outer Space

Geographies of outer space consider how spatial concepts can inform understandings of the cosmic realm and its connections to humankind. Such connections are identified throughout the history of geography, expressed through themes of cosmic ascent in imaginative writing, as well as in the production of globes and atlases. The establishment of the modern discipline of geography in some cases was beneficial to understandings of other planets and the wider makeup of the cosmos. With the advent of rocketry in the twentieth century, new kinds of geographies of outer space have manifested, including imagery of the Earth from space, projections of national identity into outer space, and new understandings of other worlds, with implications for the future of humankind's relationship with the cosmos.