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Spacefaring: The Human Dimension (Hardcover)

by Albert A. Harrison (Author) "For several months during 1997, the world riveted its attention on Russia's Mir Space Station. Successor to a string of Salyut stations, Mir had been..." (more)
Key Phrases: United States, European Space Agency, Marshall Savage (more...)

5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
The title of this book really ought to be Spacefarers, because unlike many space travel authors, Harrison, a professor of psychology, focuses primarily on the people doing the traveling. On the technological side, he explores astronaut selection and training, medical and environmental hazards, and issues of life support and habitation. He pays equal attention to "soft" science aspects of human space travel, such as the stresses that arise from working and surviving in space, group dynamics among astronauts, and even off-duty time (and it is here that Harrison boldly goes where few space authors have gone before--into the realm of sex in space).

Harrison notes that while NASA has gathered heaps of physiological data about astronauts, the agency makes little effort to collect psychological and behavioral information. In fact, such research has been discouraged. This may come from the idea that in the past, NASA astronauts were presented as "flawless individuals" and that any hints of emotional instability could possibly decrease funding. Conversely, the Russian space program, with its emphasis on long-duration flights, has always studied human behavior in space. Which leads us to one of the book's best didjaknows: Did you know that cosmonauts only played chess against groundside opponents, to avoid in-group competition and friction?

In the final chapters, Harrison does address the nuts and bolts of spacefaring, surveying prospects for lunar and Martian colonies, and even interstellar travel. The chapter on space tourism is quite comprehensive and contains a startling insight: tourism could create a push into space stronger than science or exploration. Says Harrison:

"Not only would making space accessible to a broad segment of the population give people exciting and new experiences, it would encourage many different kinds of human activities in space. Thus, the space tourism industry could develop both the technology and the popular support required to accelerate human progress in getting off our planet."

All told, Spacefaring is a broad and readable review of the hazards and issues that will confront future space travelers, and it creates a vivid picture of what daily life may be like for those lucky adventurers. --J. B. Peck

From Booklist
From the author of Living Aloft: Human Requirements for Extended Spaceflight (1985) and After Contact: The Human Response to Extraterrestrial Life (1997) comes this look at what human beings need to be able to live in space. With the U.S. poised to begin launching people into space on longer, more complicated voyages than ever before, Harrison argues that more emphasis needs to be placed on what he calls the "human dimension" of space travel (not just survival techniques but dealing, for example, with issues of loneliness and isolation). In addition to psychological issues, Harrison addresses some vital practical matters such as how space voyagers will communicate with those on Earth and how "multigeneration" missions, in which people are born, live, and die on board a space vessel, will require us to rethink many of our notions of what constitutes a society. This is an intelligent, challenging book, perhaps too technical for some general readers but ideal for those with an interest in space travel and a desire to explore the cutting edge. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

Hardcover: 342 pages
Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (March 19, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0520224531
ISBN-13: 978-0520224537
Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.4 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds

Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #137,655 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
For several months during 1997, the world riveted its attention on Russia's Mir Space Station. Successor to a string of Salyut stations, Mir had been launched eleven years before. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
United States, European Space Agency, Marshall Savage, Soviet Union, International Space Station, Mars Direct, Cold War, Jack Stuster, Johnson Space Center, Jerry Linenger, Leonard David, North American, Michael Collins, Oort Cloud, Peter Suedfeld, South Pole, Van Allen, World War, Yuri Gagarin, Andrew Thomas, Brian Harvey, Bryan Burrough, Dan Goldin, Deke Slayton, Eugene Cernan

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 81 books:

From Antarctica to Outer Space: Life in Isolation and Confinement by Albert A. Harrison on 14 pages
Strategies for Mars (Orbit Series) by Carol R. Stoker on 9 pages
Strategies for Mars: A Guide to Human Exploration (Science and Technology Series) by Carter Emmart on 8 pages
Space Physiology and Medicine by Arnauld E. Nicogossian on 7 pages
The Millennial Project: Colonizing the Galaxy in Eight Easy Steps by Marshall T. Savage on 7 pages

See all 81 books this book cites

5 books cite this book:

Managing the Knowledge Culture by Phillip Harris on page 125, and Back Matter
Rocket Dreams : How the Space Age Shaped Our Vision of a World Beyond by Marina Benjamin in Back Matter
The Survival Imperative: Using Space to Protect Earth by William E. Burrows in Back Matter
Almost Heaven: Women On The Frontiers Of Space by Bettyann Holtzmann Kevles in Back Matter
Winning the War: Advanced Weapons, Strategies, and Concepts for the Post-9/11 World by John B. Alexander Ph.D. on page 238

Books on Related Topics (learn more)

The Superpower Odyssey by Yuri Y. Karash

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	63% buy the item featured on this page: Spacefaring: The Human Dimension 5.0 out of 5 stars (4)
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	9% buy The Starflight Handbook: A Pioneer's Guide to Interstellar Travel (Wiley Science Editions) 4.6 out of 5 stars (14) $26.41
	7% buy The High Frontier: Human Colonies in Space: Apogee Books Space Series 12 4.8 out of 5 stars (16) $14.93

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Customer Reviews

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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars must-have for space scientists and sci-fi authors, May 10, 2001

By	John McKnight (Scottsdale, AZ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Al Harrison's new book is simply the best resource on the human side of spaceflight ever written. From radiation hazards to ergonomics to sex in space, Harrison provides a readable, comprehensive overview of the state of our knowledge. There are details aplenty, enough brilliant tidbits to add verisimilitude to any novel.

Harrison focuses on NASA's hostility to human-factors research, particularly in contrast to the Russians' long history of interest in crew selection and the effects of long-duration spaceflight. Given NASA's recent objections to the flight of Dennis Tito, this context is extremely timely.

His concluding chapter, on the drive to explore space, why we came so far so quickly, then walked away from human exploration, is well-reasoned, insightful and deeply passionate.

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent and important, April 14, 2001

By	David Darling, science writer and astronomer (Dundee, Scotland) - See all my reviews

Al Harrison, professor of psychology at the University of California, Davis, is doing some far-reaching and somewhat unique work on the psychological impact of the "high frontier". His previous book, After Contact, explored some of the possible psychological and social implications of contact with extraterrestrial intelligence. Now, in Spacefaring, he tackles these same issues as they apply to long-term human habitation, exploration, and settlement in space. This book is not just for the academic or space specialist. Soon, we shall all be involved and affected in some way with the human migration into the solar system and beyond. Essential - and entertaining - reading for those who want to know what lies on the journey ahead!

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Review by Pascal Lee, SETI Institute, June 1, 2001

By	Dr. Pascal Lee, SETI Institute (NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, USA) - See all my reviews

Al Harrison's book "SPACEFARING" has the qualities of an instant classic. It deals brilliantly with the central element in our ventures into space, the human being. It is a book about human factors in space. The work has the thoroughness and completeness of an academic treatise, but still reads easily. It is packed with little-known anecdotes and many cool historical and technical facts. The book's clear organization is particularly helpful, not just for guiding the layreader through a complex subject, but also for serving as a quick reference for space exploration professionals needing to read up on a specific topic. The book offers both a summary of lessons learnt and an analysis of our possible spacefaring future. For planners of a human mission to Mars, this is an ideal synthesis of where we stand on the subject of human factors.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Great book about an unexplored topic
Like many of you, I'm a total advocate for human space exploration. Sure, robots are great, with their industructability and unquestioning loyalty, but there are times when you... Read more

Published on December 11, 2001 by Fraser Cain

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