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Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean: An Environmental History of Our Place in the Solar System
The untold story of how environmental change throughout the cosmos shaped five hundred years of human civilization.
Our solar system is a dynamic arena where asteroids careen off course and solar winds hurl charged particles across billions of miles of space. Yet we seldom consider how these events, so immense in scale, influence our fragile blue planet: Earth.
In Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean, Dagomar Degroot traces the surprising threads linking human endeavor to the rest of the solar system. He reveals how variability in planetary environments has shaped geopolitics, spurred scientific and cultural innovation, and encouraged new ideas about the emergence and fate of life. Martian dust storms altered the trajectory of the Cold War and inspired fantastical stories about alien civilizations. Comet impacts on Jupiter led to the first planetary defense strategy. And volcanic eruptions spewed sulfuric acid into Venus’s atmosphere, exposing the existential risks of climate change at home.
As we stand on the brink of a new era of space settlement, cosmic environments are becoming increasingly vulnerable to human activity. They may also hold the key to slowing the destruction of environments on Earth. Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean urges us to develop an interplanetary environmentalism across a vast mosaic of entangled worlds and to consider the profound connections that bind us to the cosmos and each other.
Our solar system is a dynamic arena where asteroids careen off course and solar winds hurl charged particles across billions of miles of space. Yet we seldom consider how these events, so immense in scale, influence our fragile blue planet: Earth.
In Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean, Dagomar Degroot traces the surprising threads linking human endeavor to the rest of the solar system. He reveals how variability in planetary environments has shaped geopolitics, spurred scientific and cultural innovation, and encouraged new ideas about the emergence and fate of life. Martian dust storms altered the trajectory of the Cold War and inspired fantastical stories about alien civilizations. Comet impacts on Jupiter led to the first planetary defense strategy. And volcanic eruptions spewed sulfuric acid into Venus’s atmosphere, exposing the existential risks of climate change at home.
As we stand on the brink of a new era of space settlement, cosmic environments are becoming increasingly vulnerable to human activity. They may also hold the key to slowing the destruction of environments on Earth. Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean urges us to develop an interplanetary environmentalism across a vast mosaic of entangled worlds and to consider the profound connections that bind us to the cosmos and each other.
416 pages, Hardcover
First published October 28, 2025
12 people are currently reading
5953 people want to read
About the author
Dagomar Degroot
3 books11 followersDagomar Degroot is an environmental historian, author, and professor at Georgetown University. He was the 2024–2025 Baruch S. Blumberg Chair in Astrobiology, Exploration, and Scientific Innovation at the Library of Congress.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 22, 2025
Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean: An Environmental History of Our Place in the Solar System by Dagomar deGroot is a bold, deeply researched work that expands environmental history beyond Earth, revealing how cosmic forces have shaped five centuries of human civilization. By tracing the interplay between planetary environments and human action, deGroot offers a strikingly original perspective on history, science, and our collective future.
What makes Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean especially compelling is its ability to connect immense cosmic events with tangible human consequences. From Martian dust storms influencing Cold War geopolitics, to comet impacts on Jupiter shaping planetary defense strategies, to Venusian volcanism illuminating the existential risks of climate change, the book demonstrates how solar system dynamics have consistently informed human thought, policy, and imagination.
DeGroot’s concept of “interplanetary environmentalism” is both timely and provocative. As humanity enters a new era of space exploration and settlement, the book challenges readers to consider the ethical and environmental implications of extending human activity beyond Earth. Meticulously argued and richly interdisciplinary, Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean is an essential work for readers interested in environmental history, astronomy, and the profound connections that bind humanity to the wider cosmos.
What makes Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean especially compelling is its ability to connect immense cosmic events with tangible human consequences. From Martian dust storms influencing Cold War geopolitics, to comet impacts on Jupiter shaping planetary defense strategies, to Venusian volcanism illuminating the existential risks of climate change, the book demonstrates how solar system dynamics have consistently informed human thought, policy, and imagination.
DeGroot’s concept of “interplanetary environmentalism” is both timely and provocative. As humanity enters a new era of space exploration and settlement, the book challenges readers to consider the ethical and environmental implications of extending human activity beyond Earth. Meticulously argued and richly interdisciplinary, Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean is an essential work for readers interested in environmental history, astronomy, and the profound connections that bind humanity to the wider cosmos.
January 9, 2026
Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean is a bold, original, and deeply thought provoking work that expands the boundaries of environmental history beyond Earth itself. Dagomar Degroot masterfully demonstrates that human civilization has never existed in isolation, revealing how cosmic forces from solar winds to planetary atmospheres have shaped geopolitics, scientific discovery, cultural imagination, and environmental awareness over the past five centuries.
What sets this book apart is its ability to bridge disciplines with clarity and imagination. Degroot moves seamlessly between astronomy, environmental science, and global history, showing how events such as Martian dust storms, comet impacts, and planetary volcanism influenced Cold War strategy, planetary defense thinking, and our understanding of climate risk. At once intellectually rigorous and accessible, Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean challenges readers to rethink humanity’s place in the solar system and makes a compelling case for an interplanetary environmental ethic that feels both urgent and necessary.
What sets this book apart is its ability to bridge disciplines with clarity and imagination. Degroot moves seamlessly between astronomy, environmental science, and global history, showing how events such as Martian dust storms, comet impacts, and planetary volcanism influenced Cold War strategy, planetary defense thinking, and our understanding of climate risk. At once intellectually rigorous and accessible, Ripples on the Cosmic Ocean challenges readers to rethink humanity’s place in the solar system and makes a compelling case for an interplanetary environmental ethic that feels both urgent and necessary.
January 6, 2026
If you read one popular-science book this year, this is the one.
I grew up on Carl Sagan's _Cosmos_ and have read a lot of popular science ever since. I go to a science center with the kids and I find a reassuring familiarity with things I see there, things which match what I already know.
Not so with Degroot's book. Thoroughly well researched, inquisitive, original, poetic -- Degroot digs deeper and reveals paths less well-trodden, but ever important. I particularly enjoyed how the author connects cutting-edge speculations in various decades and centuries to prevailing concerns of the time. For example, detailed Mars maps in an era when colonial European powers prized detailed maps of territories they were conquering. Or why the movie _Armageddon_ came out the year it did. I learned about things I'd never heard about before, such as TLPs on the Moon. (Still unexplained!)
Strong recommend.
I grew up on Carl Sagan's _Cosmos_ and have read a lot of popular science ever since. I go to a science center with the kids and I find a reassuring familiarity with things I see there, things which match what I already know.
Not so with Degroot's book. Thoroughly well researched, inquisitive, original, poetic -- Degroot digs deeper and reveals paths less well-trodden, but ever important. I particularly enjoyed how the author connects cutting-edge speculations in various decades and centuries to prevailing concerns of the time. For example, detailed Mars maps in an era when colonial European powers prized detailed maps of territories they were conquering. Or why the movie _Armageddon_ came out the year it did. I learned about things I'd never heard about before, such as TLPs on the Moon. (Still unexplained!)
Strong recommend.
November 7, 2025
An interesting trip through the intersections of astronomy with human politics and culture with lots of scientific information woven in.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews