It’s 2072: the economy is booming thanks to intergalactic exploration, which has revitalized essential industries. GM now makes rocket ships, along with parts for flying cars, and the travel sector has exploded thanks to the popularity of voyages to the moon.

Proposition 8 is a thing of the past, and conservatives now support legislation to ban alien-human marriage. Everyone knows somebody’s daughter who’s fallen in love and moved to Mars – the mother, pricing flights on her implanted Internet connection, is coping well, thank you.

Back to late 2008 – it’s only natural that when the present is dark, we look to an incandescent future.

From Christina Aguilera’s superhero makeover to Beyonce’s robo-gloves (worn at the MTV Europe music awards) an increasing number of celebrities are pinning their stars to a galaxy far, far away. High-fashion designers, perhaps fed-up with the earthly limitations of contemporary life, are crafting looks less suited to Barbie than Barberella.

And why not – at time when the immediate future is uncertain, and even luxury houses like Bulgari are facing financial setbacks, who wouldn’t want to strap on some moon boots and demand a beam-up from Scottie? As bills pile up and the unemployment rates skyrocket, let’s all take a journey – led by ambassador Posh Spice, in those mystifying heelless PVC boots by Antonio Berardi – out of this world.

Take Me to Your Leader

First, a fashion flashback: before Posh showed up to shill her new fragrance in bizarre boots, she appeared as a pair of disembodied legs in Marc Jacobs Spring 2008 ad campaign. Wearing the designer’s futuristic reverse heels, the shoes garnered just slightly less attention than the question of how Jacobs managed to convince the purportedly humorless Beckham to pose like a cat trapped in a shopping bag.

Then came the Jil Sander Reverse Heel Flat, (left) which features a round heel mounted inside a sandal. (The future, evidently, lacks arch support – just another one of our clunky pedestrian concerns consigned to the past.) As designers contemplate the mysteries of the universe, they toy with structure, to create new shoe silhouettes that are cutting-edge, but not necessarily comfortable.

Take Junko Shimada, whose Paris 2009 collection featured balance-defying ballerina pointe shoes, and woven high heels equipped with stars and planets. Danish newbie Nina Hjorth is turning heads with a shoe collection so otherworldly (right) the fashion world can’t help but take notice. And Karl Lagerfeld? He’s anticipating the star wars with ankle-cuffed stilettos from his most recent runway show, and Chanel’s Platform Sandal in Satin on a 90 mm Gun Heel.

The Future’s So Bright

But wait. Before we all learn to float on our toes, and start cooling our heels on our weapons, take note: there’s no need to jump ship for Pluto. Like any runway trend, these futuristic looks can be revised to accommodate our earthly condition (like, say, gravity).

Using appealing combinations of shape and color, designers riff on the space age to craft accessible looks for any orbit. This season, Miu Miu, Christian Louboutin and Chloe all play with bold palettes, resulting in gorgeous footwear that nods to the Jetsons but remains primed for this era. And check out Melissa Plastic Dreams: this Brazilian shoe company uses 100% vegan plastic for footwear that’s eye-catching and eco-friendly. Now there’s a company that cares about our planet.

Lost in Space

Think of movies from The Day the Earth Stood Still to The Fifth Element…if Hollywood is to be trusted, the future will require lots of metallics. Nothing says space odyssey like a shiny outfit, even if your feet are planted squarely on terra firma.

Get intergalactic with silver ankle boots, bronze pumps, and Louboutin booties so spacey that they share a name with alien-slaying action hero Sigourney Weaver. Because really…if the space age never comes and we’re looking at a lifetime on this earth, why not spend a few escapist hours going back to the future?