1. Ethics, Environmental Philosophy, and the Exploration of Outer Space Erin Daly Department of Philosophy University of North Texas April 13, 2007

2. Science experiments Economic potential Military advantage Human desire to know the unknown Inspiration Why do we explore space?

3. How can we ethically justify space exploration? How do we justify our science? (especially if we are honest about its motivations)

4. Man is a rational animal. Man is a political animal. -Aristotle

5. For each proposal, we should consider two factors: Its impact on Science Its impact on Humanity How can we ethically justify space exploration?

6. What will make our science better? What is interdisciplinary about SS? Do we have an ethical obligation to involve the ‘public’ in space science? What are our ethical obligations?

7. Pale Blue Dot

8. How will we inhabit space? Are we going to treat it as a storeroom to be raided? A trash dump? A jungle gym, military outpost, national park, or church?

9. Who will own, or control space? The richest nations? Their military? Private industry? Will space be the patrimony of all earthlings? Does it already ‘belong’ to someone else?

10. The 1964 Wilderness Act Describes a wilderness as "an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain."

11. Preparing for the discovery of: Fossil signs of previous life; Currently existing microbial life; Conscious life; or Self-conscious cultural life? What rights should Martians have, even if they are only microbes? Policy needed now for unintelligent ET life