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Lunacy

Ten False Promises of the New Space Age

RRP$34.99

$27.99

  • Paperback

    200 pages

  • Release Date

    14 July 2026

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Summary

If certain business titans, corporations, and governments have their way, humans will someday be living, working, and vacationing in space. This is the much-vaunted New Space Age, and in Lunacy, philosopher Ben Bramble explains why it is a giant mistake. Bramble systematically refutes each of the ten most influential reasons given for this new generation of space exploration (and habitation), from the idea of Mars as a backup plan in case Earth meets an untimely end to the charms of …

Book Details

ISBN-13:9780691281285
ISBN-10:0691281289
Author:Ben Bramble
Publisher:Princeton University Press
Imprint:Princeton University Press
Format:Paperback
Number of Pages:200
Release Date:14 July 2026
Weight:216g
Dimensions:22mm x 136mm x 210mm
A-Format
B-Format
Lunacy by Ben Bramble - ISBN: 9780691281285
136 × 210 mm
C-Format
A4
mm / in
What They're Saying

Critics Review

“A harsh—and much needed—reality check.”—Liz Greene, Nautilus
“As an effective, digestible introduction to a swirling and often grandiose field, Lunacy will find its mark with readers wanting a ready resource to combat common arguments… . Bramble’s call to keep our feet on the ground, and first build a fairer world from which to look to the skies, isn’t without a certain beauty of its own.”—Sam Finnemore, New Zealand Listener
“It’s a thought-pro­vok­ing, page-turn­ing read. ★★★★★”—Ben Evans, BBC Sky at Night Magazine
“Lunacy is the perfect book to have in your back pocket when those tricky, philosophical, existential, history-of-humanity, private sector, New Space Age arguments spontaneously arise at your local pub.”—Mark Parry, Good Reading Magazine
“A useful and engaging corrective to the New Space Age boosterism indulged in by so much of the media. And Bramble’s final words pull no punches.”—Steven French, Concatenation

About The Author

Ben Bramble

Ben Bramble is a lecturer in philosophy in the Fenner School of Environment and Society at the Australian National University and a mission specialist at ANU’s Institute for Space. He is the author of The Passing of Momentary Well-Being and Pandemic Ethics: 8 Big Questions of COVID-19. His op-eds have appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, and The Sydney Morning Herald.

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