Skip to content
A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? (Paperback)
  • A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? (Paperback)
zoom

A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? (Paperback)

(author), (author)
4 Reviews Sign in to write a review
? RRP £10.99
£8.99
Save £2.00 (18%)
Paperback 448 Pages
Published: 10/10/2024
Free UK delivery on orders over £25, otherwise £2.99
  • 10+ in stock

Usually dispatched within 1-2 days

Free UK delivery on orders over £25, otherwise £2.99
  • This item has been added to your basket
Waterstones Says

Combining rigorous research with a beguiling sense of humour, Dr Kelly and Zach Weinersmith investigate the likelihood – and wisdom – of humans colonising the Red Planet in this enormously entertaining and thought-provoking volume.

Earth is not well. The promise of starting life anew somewhere far, far away - no climate change, no war, no Twitter - beckons, and settling the stars finally seems within our grasp. Or is it? Bestselling authors Kelly and Zach Weinersmith set out to write the essential guide to a glorious future of space settlements, but after years of original research, and interviews with leading space scientists, engineers and legal experts, they aren't so sure it's a good idea. Space tech and space business are progressing fast, but we lack the deep knowledge needed to have space-kids, build space-farms and create space nations in a way that doesn't spark conflict back home. In a world hurtling toward human expansion into space, A City on Mars investigates whether the dream of new worlds won't create a nightmare, both for settlers and the people they leave behind.

With deep expertise, a winning sense of humour and art from the beloved creator of Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal, the Weinersmiths investigate perhaps the biggest questions humanity will ever ask itself - whether and how to become multiplanetary.

Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
ISBN: 9780141993300
Number of pages: 448
Weight: 329 g
Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 26 mm


MEDIA REVIEWS

Scientific, educational, and fun as hell - Andy Weir, bestselling author of THE MARTIAN and PROJECT HAIL MARY

Can a book be hilarious, deeply-researched, utterly original and wise all at the same time? If it's by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith, of course it can. This is a sensational book; whether you read it in your snuggle tunnel or your pregnodrome, read it - Tim Harford, author of HOW TO MAKE THE WORLD ADD UP

A refreshing, clear-headed breath of life-support oxygen amidst all the tech-bro naivety and hype on space colonisation. Impeccably researched and argued, yet witty and very easy to read. Superb! - Professor Lewis Dartnell, author of BEING HUMAN

Listen up, humans. How to poop in space will be the least of our concerns. Herein are challenges most space-heads, including me, never even considered: not just technological, but legal, ethical, geopolitical. Despite the breadth and depth of research, this is a clear, lively, and hilarious read. Slam dunk, Weinersmiths! - Mary Roach, author of FUZZ AND PACKING FOR MARS

There's a tendency to have a rather ethereal and even utopian view of space settlement. Kelly and Zach Weinersmith bring us a highly entertaining and down to Earth (or should one say down to Mars?) view of our future in space, filled with humour and cogent insights - Professor Charles Cockell

Engaging, wildly informative, insightful and frequently funny - The Sunday Times Book of the Week

An exceptional new piece of popular science . . . Forceful, engaging and funny… an essential reality check for anyone who has ever looked for home in the night sky . . . hilarious. The breezy prose is studded with charming cartoons . . . This book will make you happy to live on this planet—a good thing, because you’re not leaving anytime soon - New York Times Book Review

If humanity's future looks to be in doubt, is living off-world not the ultimate insurance policy for our species? A City on Mars... answers this question very bluntly: don't pin your hopes on it... All this makes the book sound a much grimmer read than it is. It is peppered with cartoons and jokey-back references, and between each section are interludes tackling some enjoyable anecdotes from space - James Ball, The Spectator

This might be the best book ever written about humans in space, or at least the funniest. I don't know of anything else quite like it: an extended, comical confrontation between the dreams of space colonies and the gross, dangerous, tedious realities. Read it before you go - Scott Aaronson, University of Texas at Austin

A very funny book, underpinned by deadly serious questions about the future of humanity - the Times

You may also be interested in...

Wonders of the Universe
Added to basket
Stars
Added to basket
Paperback
£6.99
Sciencia
Added to basket
Hardback
£19.95
The Planets
Added to basket
Hardback
£25.00
Introducing Time
Added to basket
Packing for Mars
Added to basket
Paperback
£11.99
Parallel Worlds
Added to basket
Paperback
£10.99
Just Six Numbers
Added to basket
Wonders of the Solar System
Added to basket
A Fire on the Moon
Added to basket
Space Race
Added to basket
Paperback
£12.99
Astronomy in Minutes
Added to basket
Stargazing For Dummies
Added to basket
The Planets
Added to basket
Paperback
£10.99
The Stargazer's Handbook
Added to basket
Richard Hayden in Rye

“A Martian Chronicle”

The space settlement arm of science publishing is fairly narrow so it can be forgiven for generally advocating rapid expansion into space and planetary spaces with full exploitation of the resources to be found there.... More

Hardback edition
3 similar books recommended
Helpful? Upvote 15

“Not just for the space nerds”

If you were expecting a quick-guide on how to make Star Trek a reality, you will be slightly disappointed. From the outset, Dr. Kelly and Zach Weinersmith make it clear that, as self-proclaimed nerds for all things... More

Hardback edition
Helpful? Upvote 14

“Maybe I don't want to go to Mars after all...”

A really fun and interesting overview of the barriers to space settlement in the near term. The science and legal wranglings are challenging knotty subjects made accessible and entertaining (really hard!). A really... More

Hardback edition
Helpful? Upvote 12

Please sign in to write a review

Your review has been submitted successfully.