Science Fiction · HopefulAn engineer proposes an orbital tower linking Earth to a satellite 36,000 km above the surface
The Fountains of Paradise
The story of building a tower from Earth to orbit, set in a fictional Sri Lanka
Victor Gollancz published the novel in the UK in 1979, and Harcourt Brace Jovanovich published the US edition. It is set in the 22nd century and follows the construction of a space elevator, an orbital tower linking Earth to a geostationary satellite about 36,000 km above the surface, which would carry payloads to orbit without rockets. Vannevar Morgan is the engineer who proposes it. The setting, Taprobane, is described by Clarke as "about ninety percent congruent with the island of Sri Lanka." King Kalidasa in the framing story is a fictionalized King Kashyapa I.
More about this book
Who
Vannevar Morgan, the engineer, and King Kalidasa in the framing story.
World
The 22nd century, on the island of Taprobane, about 90 percent congruent with Sri Lanka.
What makes it different
It won the Hugo and the Nebula. Clarke later said buckminsterfullerene, not the diamond crystal described in the book, would be the material for the hyperfilament in a real space elevator.
Feel
Engineering-minded and serene.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Further reading
- The Fountains of ParadiseWikipedia