The Impact of the Overview Effect White Paper

 

The Overview Effect - Book cover.

Feb 2, 2023

Summary:

This whitepaper reviews the philosophical, technological, and financial impacts of the Overview Effect. The Overview Effect refers to the experience of astronauts, cosmonauts, and other space travelers when they see the Earth from space and in space.

The Impact of the Overview Effect
 
The Overview Effect is one of those singular experiences that has major philosophical, technological, and financial impact. The Overview Effect is understood by the vast majority of people as a paradigm-shifting philosophy, offering humanity a new understanding of who we are, where we are in the universe, and where we are going on “Spaceship Earth” in the centuries that lie ahead of us.

It is indeed that, but it is also a social science theory, a psychological perspective, and much more.

Image above: Earthrise, Photo Taken on December 24, 1968, by Apollo 8 Astronaut William Anders. Image Credits: NASA/Apollo 8/William Anders.

In relation to society on a daily basis, it is the experience provided by satellites in Low Earth Orbit and Geosynchronous Orbit that gives just about everyone on Earth a daily sense of connection. Through the Internet, for example, we can communicate as easily with someone 3,000 miles away as we can with someone in the office next to us. It is, in part, satellites that make this collapsing of time and space possible.

Earth-observing satellites, on the other hand, provide us with high-resolution pictures of the Earth continuously, laying the foundation for a new discipline, known as “planetary management,” in which terrestrial resources can be used most effectively to serve the entire terrestrial population.

These are only two examples of how space-based technological assets benefit life on Earth. There are, of course, many more.

Does it seem a “bridge too far” to suggest that the Overview Effect exerts an impact on finance and investment in SpaceTech? It may feel that way, but minimal investigation shows that it is central to the future financial promise of SpaceTech, especially space tourism.

Warmest, Frank.

Research Provider: Intro-act
Research Curator: Frank White

About Frank White:

Author. Space Philosopher. Consultant.

Frank White

Frank White has authored or coauthored numerous books on topics ranging from space exploration to climate change to artificial intelligence. His best-known work, The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution, is considered by many to be a seminal work in the field of space exploration. A film called "Overview," based largely on his work, has had nearly 8 million plays on Vimeo.

Since the first edition of his book on the subject was published in 1987, "the Overview Effect" has become a standard term for describing the spaceflight experience. The fourth edition of The Overview Effect, including original interviews with 31 astronauts, is scheduled for publication in 2019.

White considers himself to be a "space philosopher," and has long advocated developing a new philosophy of space exploration. His book on this topic, The Cosma Hypothesis: Implications of the Overview Effect, has just been published. In it, he asks the fundamental question, "What is the purpose of human space exploration? Why has the evolutionary process brought humanity to the brink of becoming a spacefaring species?"

In the book, he shares the idea of "the Human Space Program" as a "central project" that will engage all of us in the process of becoming "Citizens of the Universe."

Frank and his wife Donna live outside Boston, Massachusetts.

Frank White website: https://frankwhiteauthor.com/

Best regards, Orbiter.ch