Anthropology and Contemporary Space Exploration, with a Note on Hopi Ladders

Praet, Istvan

Abstract

This chapter offers an introduction to the emerging field of outer space studies, with a specific focus on anthropological contributions. An outstanding characteristic of this field is that it radically breaks with the typically modern division of labour between social scientists and natural scientists. What unites scholars in outer space studies is that they refuse to accept the convention that the former has nothing to say about ‘the cosmos itself’. This chapter makes it plain that off-Earth anthropologists are metaphysical troublemakers who have come to realise that they cannot be ‘safely ignored’ by their colleagues in the natural sciences.

Citation

Praet, I. (2023). Anthropology and Contemporary Space Exploration, with a Note on Hopi Ladders. In J. F. Salazar, & A. Gorman (Eds.), The Routledge Handbook of Social Studies of Outer Space. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003280507-6

• Online Publication Date: Jul 10, 2023
• Publication Date: 2023
• Deposit Date: Jul 10, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 11, 2025
• Publisher: Routledge
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Book Title: The Routledge Handbook of Social Studies of Outer Space
• Chapter Number: 5
• ISBN: 9781032248615
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003280507-6
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1618277