From Science Fiction to Space Policy

This session explores how science fiction has shaped the political imagination of space and, in turn, real space policy. We will trace how the visions of authors, filmmakers, and popularisers such as H. G. Wells, Arthur C. Clarke, and Wernher von Braun influenced public opinion, political decision makers, and ultimately the race to the Moon. We will discuss how narratives of exploration, rivalry, and destiny became instruments of strategy and national prestige, and ask which stories are shaping today’s ambitions in space, from lunar bases to the colonisation of Mars.