Colonisation
There’s something about colonisation that fascinates me. I’m not sure what is exactly, but I just cannot get enough of it. I love seeing different writers perspective on what it means to survive within the confines of a colony, and I’m not all that fussed about the location either, be it underground, on land or in space.
Underground
These images are courtesy of a real estate article on Doomsday bunkers. According to the article, which was posted in April 2012, four of these apartments had been sold, allowing the purchasers to flee to a safe haven if a catastrophic event were to occur. It certainly looks appealing from where I’m sitting, but I can’t help but wonder what the ‘reality’ would be like after a few years – or decades – of being cooped up in such a confined space.
Space
The series I am currently reading is about as far away from Forge’s colony as I can get. It’s in space, or to be more precise, the Terpsichore asteroid in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
Richard Penn’s Asteroid Police combines adventure and mystery with hard (factual) science fiction. In the first book in this series – The Dark Colony – we are introduced to Lisa, a young policewoman charged with the role of ensuring order is maintained, and it is, until she has the misfortune to make a rather unpleasant discovery.
As yet I am only part way through reading this book, but I’m finding the science in this book quite fascinating. Penn has clearly researched his subject matter well, and there is a good balance between story telling and factual information.
Another book of interest from Penn is Spacetug Copenhagen, book one of the Steps to Space series. I don’t know about anyone else, but as a child, I always imagined we would be living on other planets by now (I have an overactive imagination).
This book uses present day engineering and science to show just how close we are to that vision. It’s set just fifteen years in the future, has a luxurious hotel in orbit, and judging by the series title, will feature the birth of a space colony.
As with The Dark Colony, it’s a fascinating (and addictive) read, especially when the source of inspiration is cited as an amateur space program.
The Copenhagen Suborbitals are a non-profit, amateur based space endeavor, funded entirely by private sponsors and donors. They build suborbital space vehicles – designed to pave the way for manned space flight on a micro size spacecraft, and on a micro size budget (Copenhagen Suborbitals)
My thoughts on colonisation
Despite the distance, and very different placement of the two forms of colony, there are several elements common in both books:-
Limited Resources (and the need to use what is available)
Regulations and order
Restricted living conditions
Penn and Forge have colonies that have been established over a period of time, and both have a futuristic placement, although the Asteroid Police series is closer to our present timeline then Toys and Soldiers.
If you are interesting in reading these books, please click on the images and you will be taken directly to Amazon. I, in the meantime, shall continue to search through the masses of self-published books for a land based and underwater colony environment (please feel free to comment if you know of any).
Sources:
Ashlyn Forge: http:ashlynforge.com
Richard Penn: http://lockhand.org/
Copenhagen Suborbitals: http://copenhagensuborbitals.com/
Books featuring a colony:
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