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xiii, [1], 261, [1] pages. Sources. Front and back hinges cracked and several

xiii, [1], 261, [1] pages. Sources. Front and back hinges cracked and several loose pages in front reglued in place. Hugo and Nebula Award winning novel. Vannevar Morgan's dream of linking Earth with the stars requires a 24, 000-mile-high space elevator. But first he must solve a million technical, political, and economic problems while allaying the wrath of God. Sir Arthur Charles Clarke (16 December 1917 – 19 March 2008) was an English science fiction writer, science writer, futurist, inventor, explorer, and television host. He co-wrote the screenplay for the 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey, regarded as one of the most influential films of all time. He wrote many books and many essays. In 1961, he received the Kalinga Prize, a UNESCO award for popularizing science. Clarke's writings earned him the moniker "Prophet of the Space Age". His science fiction writings in particular made him one of the towering figures of the genre. Clarke, Robert Heinlein, and Isaac Asimov were known as the "Big Three" of science fiction. Clarke was a lifelong proponent of space travel. In 1934, while a teenager, he joined the British Interplanetary Society (BIS). In 1945, he proposed a satellite communication system using geostationary orbits. He was the chairman of the BIS from 1946 to 1947 and again in 1951–1953. Clarke emigrated to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) in 1956, to pursue scuba diving. Clarke was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1989 "for services to British cultural interests in Sri Lanka". He was knighted in 1998 and was awarded Sri Lanka's highest civil honor, Sri Lankabhimanya, in 2005. The Fountains of Paradise is a 1979 science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke. Set in the 22nd century, it describes the construction of a space elevator. This "orbital tower" is a giant structure rising from the ground and linking with a satellite in geostationary orbit at the height of approximately 22, 300 miles. Such a structure would be used to raise payloads to orbit without the expense of using rockets. The novel won both the Hugo and Nebula Awards for Best Novel. The novel focuses primarily on a project known as the Orbital Tower proposed by the main character, Vannevar Morgan. The tower is to stretch from the Earth's equator to a satellite that is in geostationary orbit. Such a structure would greatly reduce the cost of sending people and supplies into space. The main story is framed by two other stories. The first one tells of King Kalidasa, living thousands of years before Morgan is born, who is constructing a 'pleasure garden' complete with functioning fountains, in a significant engineering effort for the time. The other story, taking place long after Morgan has died, deals with aliens making contact with Earth. Due to many technical issues, there are only two locations on Earth where the Orbital Tower can be built. One is in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, and the other is Sri Kanda (a thinly veiled reference to Adam's Peak in Sri Lanka). However, there is a Buddhist temple on the island, and Mahanayake Thero, the head of the order, refuses to give permission to begin construction. Hearing of the difficulties, a group of people living on Mars contacts Morgan and suggests that the tower be built there instead. It would be smaller than the one planned for Earth, and would reach from Mars to one of its moons, Deimos. After a few setbacks, including some fatalities, construction of the tower gets underway. Although the engineer's heart is failing, he rides up the tower to take food and oxygen to a group of stranded students and their professor. After overcoming serious difficulties he succeeds, then dies of a heart attack on the way back down.