Book description
Starfarers is the story of an expedition into the far reaches of the
galaxy, where answers to mankind's greatest questions await. The saga
begins when evidence of an advanced civilization is discovered by SETI
astronomers. "Trails" observed in the sky are thought to be
from starships travelling at the speed of light, an enigma that spurs
scientific minds until this breakthrough is achieved by mankind as well.
An expedition is then mounted and an eclectic team of scientists chosen
to journey into the sector where the intelligent life is allegedly
located. But because the destination of the starship, Envoy, and her
crew is 60,000 light-years away, the time required to reach the point of
origin of the signals and return is 120,000 years--longer than Homo
sapiens has been on Earth. And though the crew is ready to face the
ramifications of such a trek, no one is prepared for what awaits them at
the outer edge of the cosmos--or back at the planet they once called
home. Starfarers is a story of patience and immediacy, but most of all
of courage. It is a saga for anyone who has ever felt the emptiness of
life on Earth and found the missing substance in the spaces between the
stars. Poul Anderson (1926-2001) was born in Pennsylvania of
Scandinavian stock. He started publishing science fiction in 1947 and
became one the great figures in the genre, serving as President of the
Science Fiction Writers of America, winning multiple Hugo and Nebula
awards, and was named a SFWA Grand Master. He collaborated regularly
with wife, Karen, and their daughter is married to noted SF writer Greg
Bear. Poul Anderson died in July 2001.
