The Age of Exploration or Discovery covered ~1500-1700 CE and saw scores of European explorers traveling beyond Europe to North and Central America, Africa, and across the Pacific region.

Distances were great, risk were unknown, funds were needed to launch expeditions, many departed, few returned.

Can we inspect this period to gain insights into the challenges that lie ahead to inhabit other planets? The lessons learned could be critical for future space travelors.

Chapter by chapter we’ll assess such lessons covering such topics as communication with intelligent beings, assessing new forms of plant and animal life, understanding new geology and geography, setting up outposts, confict among different exploration groups, establishing mutual business relationships, dealing with multicultural conflict, reaping material wealth.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1. Can We Predict How Close We Are to Reaching Extraterresial Worlds?

Chapter __. Who Are the Explorers? Based on space exploration being conducted in early 21st Century, CE, it reasonable to assume that at least the following nations will lead exoplanet exploration: United States, Peoples Republic of China (PRC), India, European Space Agency (ESA), and Arab Nations. Each nation will encounter different budget and political constraints. The Age of Exploration pasted through several stages over the 200 years upon reaching North/South America, Africa, India, and Southeast East. Initially, Portugal and Spain reached foreign lands. Later, Dutch, French, and British nations displaced the Portuguese and Spanish as global empires and national economies shifted.

So too, will exoplanet exploration will likely be led by different nations based on national budget priorities and technical capabilities..

Chapter __. Logistics and Setting Up Beachheads

Chapter __. Communication with Indiginous Extraterrestials

Chapter __. Gold, Glory, and God

Chapter __. Mineral Wealth

Chatper __. Fame and Glory

Chatper __. Evangelization of Indiginous

Chapter __. Confict Among the Explorers

Chapter __. Importance of Maps. Prior to landing on rocky exoplanets, future explorers will have developed a wide range of maps of the exoplanet. Maps will be used to stake out claims, and different explorers may use different names for the same exoplanets and locations.

All maps will be electronically available to all explorers and likely shared among the different groups of explorers. Many legal debates will arise on the rites to different areas of different exloplanets. Certain rocky exoplanets will be rich in minerals and critical to exploring additional exoplanets.

Different explorers from different earth-based explorers will argue over the right to different portions of each exoplanet.

Wouls exoplanets be imagined at different scales?