Sunjammer
Encyclopedia
"Sunjammer" is a science fiction
short story
by English author Arthur C. Clarke
. It was originally published in 1963. It has also been published under the title "The Wind from the Sun" and has been included into Clarke's 1972 collection of short stories with this title
.
designer, develops and promotes a lightweight spacecraft with a large area of solar sail
, to be powered entirely by radiation pressure
—the so-called wind from the sun. The sun-yachts start their journey in Earth's orbit, and, pushed simply by sunlight
, can achieve a speed of two thousand miles an hour within a day.
The concept leads to the development of the sport of sun-yacht racing, and after several years of refining his ideas, Merton competes in what will be his final race. His hopes for victory rest on the low mass of his craft which he has made possible through advances in automation enabling him to fly it solo.
Soon, all but two of the competitors have dropped out, mainly due to damaged craft, and it is a straight race between Merton's craft and Lebedev
, entered by a Russian crew from the University of Astrograd. Although the Lebedev is lagging Merton's yacht, its senior pilot delivers a surprise blow by announcing that he plans to jettison his co-pilot in an escape capsule now that the earlier, navigationally intensive part of the race has finished.
Merton responds by recalculating his expected margin of victory and realises that the race is now going to be neck-and-neck at the finish line. At this point news arrives of a massive, and potentially deadly, solar flare
. The race has to be abandoned, and there is no winner, though Merton abandons his craft with its sail still fully extended in order to ensure that it will be blown into interstellar space
.
praised the story as an example of "good, solid science fiction . . . the kind of story which justifies the existence of science fiction as a genre."
Wollheim
and Carr
selected the story for their annual "year's best" anthology
.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by English author Arthur C. Clarke
Arthur C. Clarke
Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, CBE, FRAS was a British science fiction author, inventor, and futurist, famous for his short stories and novels, among them 2001: A Space Odyssey, and as a host and commentator in the British television series Mysterious World. For many years, Robert A. Heinlein,...
. It was originally published in 1963. It has also been published under the title "The Wind from the Sun" and has been included into Clarke's 1972 collection of short stories with this title
The Wind from the Sun
The Wind from the Sun is a 1972 collection of short stories by science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke. Some of the stories originally appeared in a number of different publications...
.
Plot summary
John Merton, a spaceshipSpacecraft
A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....
designer, develops and promotes a lightweight spacecraft with a large area of solar sail
Solar sail
Solar sails are a form of spacecraft propulsion using the radiation pressure of light from a star or laser to push enormous ultra-thin mirrors to high speeds....
, to be powered entirely by radiation pressure
Radiation pressure
Radiation pressure is the pressure exerted upon any surface exposed to electromagnetic radiation. If absorbed, the pressure is the power flux density divided by the speed of light...
—the so-called wind from the sun. The sun-yachts start their journey in Earth's orbit, and, pushed simply by sunlight
Sunlight
Sunlight, in the broad sense, is the total frequency spectrum of electromagnetic radiation given off by the Sun. On Earth, sunlight is filtered through the Earth's atmosphere, and solar radiation is obvious as daylight when the Sun is above the horizon.When the direct solar radiation is not blocked...
, can achieve a speed of two thousand miles an hour within a day.
The concept leads to the development of the sport of sun-yacht racing, and after several years of refining his ideas, Merton competes in what will be his final race. His hopes for victory rest on the low mass of his craft which he has made possible through advances in automation enabling him to fly it solo.
Soon, all but two of the competitors have dropped out, mainly due to damaged craft, and it is a straight race between Merton's craft and Lebedev
Pyotr Nikolaevich Lebedev
Pyotr Nikolaevich Lebedev was a Russian physicist.He made his doctoral degree in Strasbourg under the supervision of August Kundt in 1887–1891. In 1891 he started working in Moscow State University in the group of Alexander Stoletov. There he made his famous experimental studies of...
, entered by a Russian crew from the University of Astrograd. Although the Lebedev is lagging Merton's yacht, its senior pilot delivers a surprise blow by announcing that he plans to jettison his co-pilot in an escape capsule now that the earlier, navigationally intensive part of the race has finished.
Merton responds by recalculating his expected margin of victory and realises that the race is now going to be neck-and-neck at the finish line. At this point news arrives of a massive, and potentially deadly, solar flare
Solar flare
A solar flare is a sudden brightening observed over the Sun surface or the solar limb, which is interpreted as a large energy release of up to 6 × 1025 joules of energy . The flare ejects clouds of electrons, ions, and atoms through the corona into space. These clouds typically reach Earth a day...
. The race has to be abandoned, and there is no winner, though Merton abandons his craft with its sail still fully extended in order to ensure that it will be blown into interstellar space
Interstellar medium
In astronomy, the interstellar medium is the matter that exists in the space between the star systems in a galaxy. This matter includes gas in ionic, atomic, and molecular form, dust, and cosmic rays. It fills interstellar space and blends smoothly into the surrounding intergalactic space...
.
Reception
Algis BudrysAlgis Budrys
Algis Budrys was a Lithuanian-American science fiction author, editor, and critic. He was also known under the pen names "Frank Mason", "Alger Rome", "John A. Sentry", "William Scarff", and "Paul Janvier."-Biography:...
praised the story as an example of "good, solid science fiction . . . the kind of story which justifies the existence of science fiction as a genre."
Wollheim
Donald A. Wollheim
Donald Allen Wollheim was an American science fiction ' editor, publisher, writer, and fan. As an author, he published under his own name as well as under pseudonyms, including David Grinnell....
and Carr
Terry Carr
Terry Gene Carr was a U.S. science fiction author, editor, and teacher.Terry Carr was born in Grants Pass, Oregon...
selected the story for their annual "year's best" anthology
World's Best Science Fiction: 1966
World's Best Science Fiction: 1966 is an anthology of science fiction short stories edited by Donald A. Wollheim and Terry Carr, the second volume in a series of seven. It was first published in paperback by Ace Books in 1966. It was reprinted by the same publisher in 1970 under the alternate title...
.
See also
- Mike OldfieldMike OldfieldMichael Gordon Oldfield is an English multi-instrumentalist musician and composer, working a style that blends progressive rock, folk, ethnic or world music, classical music, electronic music, New Age, and more recently, dance. His music is often elaborate and complex in nature...
used the title "Sunjammer" for the fifth movement of his Tubular Bells IITubular Bells IITubular Bells II is the 15th music album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1992. The album - the first for his new record label, Warner Bros. Records, following an acrimonious departure from Virgin Records after twenty years - was conceived as a sequel to Oldfield's 1973 Tubular Bells...
album. Oldfield has also used other Arthur C. Clarke titles as basis for his music, such as The Songs of Distant Earth for his The Songs of Distant EarthThe Songs of Distant Earth (album)The Songs of Distant Earth is the 16th album by Mike Oldfield, released in 1994. It is based on Arthur C. Clarke's science fiction novel The Songs of Distant Earth.- Release details :...
album. - The Doctor WhoDoctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
serial EnlightenmentEnlightenment (Doctor Who)Enlightenment is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was originally broadcast in four twice-weekly parts from March 1 to March 9, 1983...
also used a solar sail race as the basis for its plot. - Poul Anderson writing as Winston P. Sanders published an apparently unrelated story under the title "Sunjammer" in Analog Science Fiction / Science Fact, April 1964.
External links
- The Cosmos 1 CD, launched with Cosmos 1Cosmos 1Cosmos 1 was a project by Cosmos Studios and The Planetary Society to test a solar sail in space. As part of the project, an unmanned solar sail spacecraft christened Cosmos 1 was launched into space at 15:46:09 EDT on June 21, 2005 from the submarine Borisoglebsk in the Barents Sea...
, includes the full text of "The Wind from the Sun" and other solar sailSolar sailSolar sails are a form of spacecraft propulsion using the radiation pressure of light from a star or laser to push enormous ultra-thin mirrors to high speeds....
writings. - The Wind From The Sun / Sunjammer comic strip version, by Olivier Boisard.