Description: Changes in cosmic environments, from solar storms to asteroid impacts, have altered the course of history. Tracing how such events shaped geopolitics and spurred scientific and cultural innovation, Dagomar Degroot asks what comes next as the solar system becomes increasingly vulnerable to human activity.
Brief description: Dagomar Degroot is Associate Professor of Environmental History at Georgetown University. A contributor to the Washington Post, Nature, and Aeon, he is the author of The Frigid Golden Age: Climate Change, the Little Ice Age, and the Dutch Republic, 1560-1720, named one of the ten best history books of 2018 by the Financial Times.
Review Quotes: Filled with fascinating anecdotes...It tells the story of our scientific advances and missteps, and how our knowledge of the Solar System has grown and developed . It then takes a step back to explore how these changes have shaped our worldview and altered our priorities, politics and popular culture...Degroot's writing throughout is clear, intelligent and meticulously researched, and the ideas and arguments are well presented. The overall layout works well and I particularly enjoyed the concise conclusion sections that end each chapter. I love books like this.--Jenny Winder "BBC Sky At Night Magazine" (6/1/2026 12:00:00 AM)