Ensuring a Sustainable World
We are on the cusp of a 21st century Age of Discovery - about the Earth, about the solar system, about ourselves and our place in the cosmos - with new opportunities to address age-old challenges, as well as to meet emerging ones. While advancing into space is not the answer to these challenges, it can be a significant and vital part of an answer, providing benefits that other answers cannot.
With a thoughtful program of space activities we can ensure a sustainable world with abundant energy and resources, a high standard of living, and unprecedented opportunity for all. However, to become a widely held vision that we must pursue now, rather than just interesting ideas for some distant time, we need to see space as integral to addressing societal issues. This book shows a way to do that.
There are abundant opportunities in space, but the only way to utilize them is to go there. As our ancestors crossed thresholds to inhabit the Earth, we can cross the threshold to become a space-faring civilization, and realize the benefits of those efforts. Space is only 100 km (62 miles) away, you just need to look up.
What people are saying:
"Crossing the Threshold is a carefully considered, insightful narrative that should interest anyone and everyone who cares about the future of spaceflight." - Homer Hickam, author of Rocket Boys/October Sky
"Crossing the Threshold is a NASA veteran’s thoughtful and considered look at the value of space travel and exploration, not only for satisfying humanity’s seemingly unquenchable thirst for adventure and knowledge but also for preparing and positioning us technically to begin to solve some of the greatest problems facing us on Earth." - Henry Petroski, Aleksandar S. Vesic Professor of Civil Engineering and Professor of History, Duke University, author of The Essential Engineer: Why Science Alone Will Not Solve Our Global Problems
"Paul Wieland knows space from the bottom-up…and offers a fresh and valuable perspective. I intended only to skim the book but became so interested I soon found myself deeply involved in reading it.” - Norm Augustine, author of Augustine's Laws, past president of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, member of the President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, former CEO of Lockheed Martin Corporation
Crossing the Threshold "is very impressive for the range of ideas and technical specifics." - Felix Godwin, author of The Exploration of the Solar System
Paul Wieland is a professional engineer (P.E.) who earned degrees in botany and mechanical engineering from the University of Louisville (Kentucky). From 1983 to 2005, he was a NASA civil servant at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama, working primarily on development of the environmental control and life support systems for the International Space Station and other space missions. In 1991 he was a founding member of the Institute for Advanced Studies in Life Support. 