The Songs Of Distant Earth
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''The Songs of Distant Earth'' is a 1986
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke, based upon his 1958 short story of the same title. Of all of his novels, Clarke stated that this was his favourite. Prior to the publishing of the novel, Clarke also wrote a short
step outline A step outline (also informally called a beat sheet or scene-by-scene) is a detailed telling of a story with the intention of turning the story into a screenplay for a motion picture. The step outline briefly details every scene of the screenpla ...
with the same title, published in ''Omni'' magazine and anthologised in '' The Sentinel'' in 1983. The story is set in the 39th century and depicts the journey of the spaceship ''Magellan'' as it carries a large group of colonists in suspended animation to a distant planet after Earth's sun goes
nova A nova ( novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. All observed novae involve white ...
. En route, it has to stop for repairs at the planet Thalassa, which was colonised 700 years earlier but the colonists there lost contact with Earth for the past couple of centuries. The story delves into the cultural and emotional impact of the distant Earth’s demise on both sets of colonists, and how humans from two different worlds and societies interact with each other. The novel explores apocalyptic,
atheistic Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...
, and
utopian A utopia ( ) typically describes an imagined community or society that possesses highly desirable or near-perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia'', which describes a fictional island soci ...
ideas, as well as the effects of long-term
interstellar travel Interstellar travel is the hypothetical travel of spacecraft between star systems. Due to the vast distances between the Solar System and nearby stars, interstellar travel is not practicable with current propulsion technologies. To travel between ...
, high technology, and extra-terrestrial life. Additional themes include human survival, adaptation, and the challenges of starting anew on an alien world.


Plot summary

The novel is set in the early 3800s and takes place almost entirely on the faraway oceanic planet of
Thalassa Thalassa (; ; Attic Greek: , ''thálatta'') was the general word for 'sea' and for its divine female personification in Greek mythology. The word may have been of Pre-Greek origin and connected to the name of the Mesopotamian primordial sea godde ...
. Thalassa has a relatively small human population, now in the tens of thousands, sent there by way of an embryonic seed pod centuries earlier. This was one of many such colonization missions sent from
Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...
in an attempt to continue the human race in the centuries before the Earth was destroyed. The story begins with an introduction of the Thalassans – the marine biologist Brant, his partner Mirissa and her brother Kumar. They are typical examples of the Thalassan culture; quiet, stable, and free from religion and supernatural influence. Their peaceful existence is changed with the arrival of the ''Magellan'', an interstellar spaceship from Earth containing almost a million colonists who have been put into
cryonic suspension Cryonics (from ''kryos'', meaning "cold") is the Cryopreservation, low-temperature freezing (usually at ) and storage of human remains in the hope that resurrection may be possible in the future. Cryonics is regarded with skepticism by the ma ...
for a five century-long voyage to the planet Sagan Two, which they aim to terraform and colonize. In a series of descriptive passages, the events leading up to the race to save the human species are explained. Scientists in the 1960s discover that the
neutrino emissions from the Sun A solar neutrino is a neutrino originating from nuclear fusion in the Sun's core, and is the most common type of neutrino passing through any source observed on Earth at any particular moment. Neutrinos are elementary particles with extremely smal ...
– a result of the nuclear reactions that fuel the star – are far diminished from expected levels. At a secret session of the
International Astronomical Union The International Astronomical Union (IAU; , UAI) is an international non-governmental organization (INGO) with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreach, education, and developmen ...
it is confirmed that the Sun will become a
nova A nova ( novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. All observed novae involve white ...
around the year AD 3600. Over the centuries, humanity develops advanced technologies to send out seeding ships containing human and other mammalian embryos (and later on, simply stored
DNA Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
sequences), along with robot parents, to planets that are considered habitable. One such ship is sent to the far-off
ocean world An ocean world, ocean planet or water world is a type of planet or natural satellite that contains a substantial amount of water in the form of oceans, as part of its hydrosphere, either beneath the surface, as subsurface oceans, or on the s ...
of Thalassa and successfully establishes a small human colony there in the year 3109. Sending live humans, even ones placed into cryogenic hibernation, was deemed unfeasible at that time due to the immense amount of fuel that a rocket-propelled spacecraft, large and fast enough to carry thousands of humans to the stars in a reasonable amount of time, would have to use. However, this limitation is eventually overcome with the development of the "Quantum Drive"an engine that taps the bottomless well of
zero point energy Zero-point energy (ZPE) is the lowest possible energy that a quantum mechanical system may have. Unlike in classical mechanics, quantum systems constantly fluctuate in their lowest energy state as described by the Heisenberg uncertainty pr ...
less than a hundred years before the Sun is set to become a nova. This breakthrough allows for the construction of a fleet of massive, crewed interstellar vehicles, including the ''Magellan'', whose crew witnesses the detonation of the Sun and the destruction of Earth only three years after launch. In the intervening years, the colony on Thalassa loses contact with Earth due to the destruction of its communication abilities by a volcanic eruption 400 years after its founding. The giant radio dish is never repaired due to an ingrained tendency among the Thalassans to
procrastinate Procrastination is the act of unnecessarily delaying or postponing something despite knowing that there could be negative consequences for doing so. It is a common human experience involving delays in everyday chores or even putting off tasks such ...
. The Thalassans are therefore unaware of later developments on Earth, including crewed interstellar travel. Earth assumes the colony was either destroyed, or reverted to barbarism, due to the loss of contact. More than 200 years after the end of Earth, the ''Magellan'' arrives at Thalassa, approaching the midpoint of its voyage to Sagan Two. Primarily, the objective is to replenish the ship's mammoth ice shield that had prevented micrometeors from damaging it during its interstellar journey. Thalassa is the obvious choice for this operation, as 95% of the planet's surface is covered by water. However, it soon becomes apparent that the human colony there is still present and flourishing. Aboard the ''Magellan'', several crew members are awakened by the ship to undertake the mission, while most of the 900,000 sleeping passengers remain in hibernation. Among the crew is Loren Lorenson, a young engineer, and Moses Kaldor, an eminent statesman. The arrival of the visitors from Earth is a monumental event for the easygoing Thalassans, who never expected to see or hear from any other human beings. To the crew of the ''Magellan'', it is a welcome surprise to meet the natives and sample the pleasures of a beautiful and hospitable planet. A tale of love and tragedy starts to develop as Loren and Mirissa quickly fall in love, a situation that demonstrates the different level of social
mores Mores (, sometimes ; , plural form of singular , meaning "manner, custom, usage, or habit") are social norms that are widely observed within a particular society or culture. Mores determine what is considered morally acceptable or unacceptable ...
between the two cultures. The Thalassans appear free from monogamy and sexual possessiveness, a situation that the lonely and troubled crew quickly find out. Due to this and other aspects of the Thalassans' way of life, and the duration of the stay on the planet to repair the ship's ice shield, a small contingent of the ''Magellan'' crew quickly becomes disenchanted with the original objective of their mission to Sagan 2, leading to a threat of mutiny. A more gentle and parental relationship also develops between Mirissa and Moses, a man deeply affected by the destruction of Earth and the loss of his wife. Moses soon provides Mirissa an insight into the culture and ways of Earth lost to the Thalassans, including the concepts of war and religion, both alien to Mirissa and her people. During the course of the stay, and due to the construction of a massive plant for freezing the huge ice blocks for the shield, the Terrans and the Thalassans become aware of the existence of potentially intelligent sea creatures living in the depths of the Thalassan oceans. The "scorps" are similar to the sea scorpions of Earth, only much larger. It soon becomes evident that the scorps are responsible for the theft of metals and wire from several Thalassan underwater projects, including a fish trapping tool being developed by Brant. The intelligence of these creatures is questioned by most, but Moses believes they may have the potential for developing into a future intelligent species. Several unforeseen events occur that shatter the dream of idyllic life on Thalassa, and also remind the ''Magellan'' crew that they must soon continue their prime mission, and leave the Thalassans to their own destiny. The story concludes with an air of tragedy and hope, as the relationship between Mirissa and Loren ends; the transient nature and ultimate futility of their love revealed. Mirissa chooses to conceive a child by Loren, but a change in scheduling of the mission brought about by the threat of mutiny by the crew means he will never see his son. Brant accepts the child as his own. The dissatisfied elements of the ''Magellan'' crew are left to live on Thalassa as they requested, a development which in itself may now change Thalassan culture forever. The ''Magellan'' departs, and three centuries later finally arrives at Sagan Two. Loren views the numerous messages and video logs sent from Thalassa while he was in hibernation and witnesses the lives of Mirissa and his child, both long dead.


Scientific aspects

The novel explores one possible outcome of the
solar neutrino problem The solar neutrino problem concerned a large discrepancy between the flux of solar neutrinos as predicted from the Sun's luminosity and as measured directly. The discrepancy was first observed in the mid-1960s and was resolved around 2002. The fl ...
, which was unsolved when Clarke wrote the work but has since been explained. There seemed to be a lack of
neutrino A neutrino ( ; denoted by the Greek letter ) is an elementary particle that interacts via the weak interaction and gravity. The neutrino is so named because it is electrically neutral and because its rest mass is so small ('' -ino'') that i ...
s reaching the Earth from the Sun, because scientists were only looking for one particular state of the neutrino particle. In the 'Acknowledgements' section of the book, Clarke explains why he chose
vacuum energy Vacuum energy is an underlying background energy that exists in space throughout the entire universe. The vacuum energy is a special case of zero-point energy that relates to the quantum vacuum. The effects of vacuum energy can be experiment ...
for spacecraft propulsion – speculated as scientifically viable, but highly futuristic technology. The novel also features a
space elevator A space elevator, also referred to as a space bridge, star ladder, and orbital lift, is a proposed type of planet-to-space transportation system, often depicted in science fiction. The main component would be a cable (also called a tether) an ...
, a concept that Clarke has used in previous works (most prominently in his 1979 novel ''
The Fountains of Paradise ''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 l ...
''). In his introduction to the novel, Clarke states that he wished the work to deal with a realistic interstellar voyage, without the use of
warp drive A warp drive or a drive enabling space warp is a fictional superluminal (faster than the speed of light) spacecraft propulsion system in many science fiction works, most notably ''Star Trek'', and a subject of ongoing real-life physics research ...
s or other fantastic faster-than-light technologies that provide near-instantaneous interstellar travel in which light years are traversed in days, hours, or even minutes (such as in the ''
Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera media franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and Cultural impact of Star Wars, quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop cu ...
'' and ''
Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...
'' franchises) as opposed to years, decades or centuries. Despite the exotic nature of its quantum drive, the starship ''Magellan'' takes 212 years to travel the 50 light years to Thalassa.


Setting

In the story, there are 10 known colonies of Earth, most of which have lost contact with Earth. Several planets are mentioned by name: *Earth is the Mother world to the human race, destroyed over 200 years prior to the story due to the Sun going
nova A nova ( novae or novas) is a transient astronomical event that causes the sudden appearance of a bright, apparently "new" star (hence the name "nova", Latin for "new") that slowly fades over weeks or months. All observed novae involve white ...
. The ''Magellan'' was the last colony ship to leave before the sun exploded. The word "Earth" is hard for the people of Thalassa to say due to its loss. *Thalassa is the world on which most of the story takes place. 50 light years from Earth, it is an ocean world with three volcanic islands, and its own aquatic biota. The planet was colonised by a seed ship in the year 3109. The protagonists live on the southern of the three inhabited islands, and based on the limited physical descriptions and their names, they appear to be of mixed ethnic background. *Pasadena is a planet in orbit around
Alpha Centauri A Alpha Centauri (, α Cen, or Alpha Cen) is a star system in the southern constellation of Centaurus. It consists of three stars: Rigil Kentaurus (), Toliman (), and Proxima Centauri (). Proxima Centauri is the closest star to th ...
, just over 4 light years from Earth. Although Earth has lost contact with the colony there, it may still be thriving. *Sagan Two is the destination of the star ship ''Magellan'', located 75 light years from Thalassa. The ''Magellan'' finally reaches Sagan Two in the year 4135. It is an untouched but Mars-like icy planet, larger than Earth, with about forty percent ocean and a mean
temperature Temperature is a physical quantity that quantitatively expresses the attribute of hotness or coldness. Temperature is measurement, measured with a thermometer. It reflects the average kinetic energy of the vibrating and colliding atoms making ...
of twenty-five degrees Fahrenheit. Named for science communicator
Carl Sagan Carl Edward Sagan (; ; November 9, 1934December 20, 1996) was an American astronomer, planetary scientist and science communicator. His best known scientific contribution is his research on the possibility of extraterrestrial life, including e ...
, it has a pure nitrogen atmosphere that is terraformed by the ''Magellans crew after arrival. *Sirius X is a colony of Earth mentioned in the story.


Adaptations

No screen adaptations of the novel have been made, though the original 1958 short story was adapted as a radio play by the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
in 1962, directed by Charles Parr and produced by John Gibson. Writing in ''
The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. First published in 1791, it is the world's oldest Sunday newspaper. In 1993 it was acquired by Guardian Media Group Limited, and operated as a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' ...
'', Paul Ferris opined that it was "better than the average space fiction" and it contained a "shuddery juxtaposition of complicated technology and simple fear."


Cross-media influences

Multi-instrumentalist and composer
Mike Oldfield Michael Gordon Oldfield (born 15 May 1953) is an English retired musician, songwriter and producer best known for his debut studio album ''Tubular Bells'' (1973), which became an unexpected critical and commercial success. Though primarily a gu ...
wrote an entire album based on – and entitled – ''
The Songs of Distant Earth ''The Songs of Distant Earth'' is a 1986 science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke, Arthur C. Clarke, based upon his 1958 short story of the same title. Of all of his novels, Clarke stated that this was his favourite. Prio ...
'', which was released in 1994. The album has a foreword written by Clarke. Oldfield included a CD-ROM multi-media interactive exploration animation software on some of the locations from the book, including the " Hibernaculum". The album has been re-released in a package with the original short story, the movie outline and the CD-ROM. The ending song and final chapter of ''
Muv-Luv Unlimited is a Japanese visual novel A visual novel (VN) is a form of digital interactive fiction. Visual novels are often associated with the medium of video games, but are not always labeled as such themselves. They combine a textual narr ...
'' are both named after ''The Songs of Distant Earth'', following the theme of every chapter having been named after a relevant or semi-relevant sci-fi story. The final part of 1987 science fiction anime Space Fantasia 2001 Nights is named "The Songs of Distant Earth".


Reception

''The Songs of Distant Earth'' received a positive review from Gerald Jonas in ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
''. Jonas praised its scope and its exploration of philosophical dilemmas: "The drama that interests Mr. Clarke is played out on a much larger canvas. It concerns the lures and limitations of knowledge, the destiny of mankind, and the fate of the universe."
Dave Langford David Rowland Langford (born 10 April 1953) is a British author, editor, and critic, largely active within the science fiction field. He publishes the science-fiction fanzine and newsletter ''Ansible'' and holds the all-time record for most Hug ...
reviewed ''The Songs of Distant Earth'' for ''
White Dwarf A white dwarf is a Compact star, stellar core remnant composed mostly of electron-degenerate matter. A white dwarf is very density, dense: in an Earth sized volume, it packs a mass that is comparable to the Sun. No nuclear fusion takes place i ...
'' #81, and stated that "Let's face it, Clarke's characters can only manage three emotions: intellectual hunger, sorrow for bygone glories (here a nova-zapped Earth), and awe in the face of the infinite. None is appropriate to a bittersweet love affair; with this vacuum at the book's core, the other bits don't fuse together but just lie there. Pity."


References


Further reading

*


External links

* *
"The Songs of Distant Earth"
(short story) on the
Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Songs Of Distant Earth, The 1986 science fiction novels 1986 British novels 1958 short stories Fiction set in the 4th millennium Grafton (publisher) books Novels by Arthur C. Clarke Short stories by Arthur C. Clarke Fiction set on ocean planets Books with cover art by Michael Whelan