The Third Planet

The Third Planet chronicles the odyssey of spacecraft E719 and its four robotic life forms (rolfs) as they search for intelligent life in an unexplored star system. Warning: this is not a bombastic space opera: there is no warp speed, no planet-wrecking blaster, no infinite power supply, no time travel, in fact, nothing violates physical law. A former space scientist, the author carefully outlines interstellar travel as it will occur— without humans in the loop and over incredibly long time spans. The robotic crew face actual problems that real space explorers will face such: fuel rationing, radiation storms, electro-mechanical malfunctions, hostile environments, complex trajectories, and tediously long intervals when absolutely nothing happens. When the rolfs discover an advanced civilization on the Third Planet, they must weigh ethical concerns when the civilization turns out to be violent and warlike. After transmitting their findings back to the Makers on the home world, the crew must contend with a shocking directive from the High Council. A final plot twist shows the Makers themselves confronted a situation mankind currently deals with.