From the author of the bestsellers ‘Prisoners of Geography’ and ‘The Power of Geography’, we now have Tim Marshall’s enlightening ‘The Future of Geography’ (Elliott & Thompson, £20, ISBN 9781783966875), extending his geopolitical series not only into an informal trilogy, but also into space. Those still thinking that geography is about capital cities and national flags are invited to visit the brave new world of the next phase of extraterrestrial human exploration, in which engineering and technology are the instruments of propulsion, survival and power.
With thousands of satellites already in low-Earth orbit (LEO), we’re used to the idea of mature technology circulating in space. But the 21st century has seen the emergence of private space-tech entrepreneurs who smell money in the stars, and it is a rare news cycle that rolls by without mention of another ‘Moon shot’ and its inevitable claim to be a step further towards Mars. Space, as Marshall observes...