Missile Gap
Encyclopedia
"Missile Gap" is a 2006 English language science fiction
novella
, originally published in the anthology One Million A.D.
by British
author Charles Stross
. It won the Locus Award
for best novella of 2006. The novella was republished in Stross's short-story collection Wireless in 2009.
. Measurements on Cepheid variable stars indicate that the Alderson disk is located in the Lesser Magellanic Cloud, and that the epoch is roughly 800,000 years later than the calendar date (give or take 100,000 to 200,000 years). In the sky, the stars of the Milky Way
are reddened and metal-depleted, evidence that it is now controlled by a Type-III civilization
capable of controlling the resources of an entire galaxy. Three theories for the change are suggested within the novella:
The first hypothesis would indicate that the characters of the book are the original humans of the 20th century Earth. The latter two hypotheses would indicate that the characters of the book are duplicates of humans that lived and died thousands of years previously.
The creatures that moved or copied humanity are unknown, as is the technology they used and the purpose for their action.
Because of the projection
of a spherical surface onto a flat surface, some changes occur: North American is now much further from Asia, as there is no polar route
. Furthermore, launching an artificial satellite into orbit
becomes impossible, and chemical-fueled ICBMs are no longer capable of reaching other continents. The gravitational attraction in the near field of an Alderson disk does not drop away according to the inverse-square law
but is approximately constant and perpendicular to the disk, so missile trajectories become parabolic
rather than segments of elliptical orbits
. Thus, both the strategic bomber
and ICBM "legs" of the nuclear triad
are no longer feasible so nuclear deterrence
breaks down, and the Soviet Union
takes advantage of this to conquer much of Western Europe.
There are several sub-plots - the exploration of the new world by both superpowers forms much of the major plot: Yuri Gagarin
captains a huge, nuclear-powered Ekranoplan on behalf of the Soviets, whilst the Americans launch cruise liners filled with colonists for distant islands - Madelaine Holbright (initially a housewife) begins an affair with an John Martin, an entymologist who is almost fatally stung by native termites which begin to display signs of intelligence. Cold war
tensions between the two super states provide the inbetween plot direction.
A character named Gregor seems to be highly connected with the American Government, and is later shown to be in fact an advanced alien termite with pheromone control, and is guiding the transplanted humanity towards nuclear destruction, to clear the path for the "mock aboriginal termites" that have previously stung Martin.
Eventually Gregor is successful, and humanity is destroyed by their own nuclear missiles - Gregor's intelligence is saved and it is heavily implied that not only has this happened before, but that it will happen again, supporting (but not actually confirming) the second two of the suggested theories.
To explain plot sections and provide background information, Stross makes use of themes that recur in his works - the use of security clearance briefings, and codewords to infer secret levels of information - COLLECTION and RUBY for Missile Gap
described the novella as a "blend of 1900s H. G. Wells
and 1970s propaganda, updated for the 21st century in the clear, chilly and fashionably cynical style that lets Stross get away with premises that would be absurdly cheesy in anyone else's hands." Carl Hays in his review for Booklist
called the novel a "bizarre, nevertheless brilliant alternate-history novella featuring a protracted U.S.–Soviet cold war."
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...
novella
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
, originally published in the anthology One Million A.D.
One Million A.D.
One Million A.D. is a science fiction anthology edited by Gardner Dozois that was published in 2005.-Contents:The book includes 6 novellas, all commissioned for this book and published here for the first time. The stories are all supposed to take place in the year One Million A.D...
by British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
author Charles Stross
Charles Stross
Charles David George "Charlie" Stross is a British writer of science fiction, Lovecraftian horror and fantasy. He was born in Leeds.Stross specialises in hard science fiction and space opera...
. It won the Locus Award
Locus Award
The Locus Award is a literary award established in 1971 and presented to winners of Locus magazine's annual readers' poll. Currently, the Locus Awards are presented at an annual banquet...
for best novella of 2006. The novella was republished in Stross's short-story collection Wireless in 2009.
Plot
On October 2, 1962, the universe underwent a change - instantly, the continents of the Earth were no longer wrapped onto a spherical planet but were on the surface of an Alderson diskAlderson disk
An Alderson disk is an artificial astronomical megastructure, like Niven's Ringworld, or a Dyson sphere. The disk is a giant platter with a thickness of several thousand miles. The sun rests in the hole at the center of the disk. The outer radius of an Alderson disk would be roughly equivalent...
. Measurements on Cepheid variable stars indicate that the Alderson disk is located in the Lesser Magellanic Cloud, and that the epoch is roughly 800,000 years later than the calendar date (give or take 100,000 to 200,000 years). In the sky, the stars of the Milky Way
Milky Way
The Milky Way is the galaxy that contains the Solar System. This name derives from its appearance as a dim un-resolved "milky" glowing band arching across the night sky...
are reddened and metal-depleted, evidence that it is now controlled by a Type-III civilization
Kardashev scale
The Kardashev scale is a method of measuring an advanced civilization's level of technological advancement. The scale is only theoretical and in terms of an actual civilization highly speculative; however, it puts energy consumption of an entire civilization in a cosmic perspective. It was first...
capable of controlling the resources of an entire galaxy. Three theories for the change are suggested within the novella:
- the atoms making up the surface and people of earth have somehow peeled off the Earth and shipped to a new location
- Marvin MinskyMarvin MinskyMarvin Lee Minsky is an American cognitive scientist in the field of artificial intelligence , co-founder of Massachusetts Institute of Technology's AI laboratory, and author of several texts on AI and philosophy.-Biography:...
suggests that a snapshot of the world was taken and the snapshot has been used as the basis for a physical recreation - Hans MoravecHans MoravecHans Moravec is an adjunct faculty member at the Robotics Institute of Carnegie Mellon University. He is known for his work on robotics, artificial intelligence, and writings on the impact of technology. Moravec also is a futurist with many of his publications and predictions focusing on...
suggests that a snapshot of the world was taken and the snapshot has been used as the basis for a simulated realitySimulated realitySimulated reality is the proposition that reality could be simulated—perhaps by computer simulation—to a degree indistinguishable from "true" reality. It could contain conscious minds which may or may not be fully aware that they are living inside a simulation....
The first hypothesis would indicate that the characters of the book are the original humans of the 20th century Earth. The latter two hypotheses would indicate that the characters of the book are duplicates of humans that lived and died thousands of years previously.
The creatures that moved or copied humanity are unknown, as is the technology they used and the purpose for their action.
Because of the projection
Map projection
A map projection is any method of representing the surface of a sphere or other three-dimensional body on a plane. Map projections are necessary for creating maps. All map projections distort the surface in some fashion...
of a spherical surface onto a flat surface, some changes occur: North American is now much further from Asia, as there is no polar route
Polar route
A polar route refers to an aircraft route across the uninhabited polar ice cap region. The American Federal Aviation Administration defines the North Polar area of operations as the area lying north of 78 deg north latitude , which is entirely north of Alaska and most of Siberia...
. Furthermore, launching an artificial satellite into orbit
Orbit
In physics, an orbit is the gravitationally curved path of an object around a point in space, for example the orbit of a planet around the center of a star system, such as the Solar System...
becomes impossible, and chemical-fueled ICBMs are no longer capable of reaching other continents. The gravitational attraction in the near field of an Alderson disk does not drop away according to the inverse-square law
Inverse-square law
In physics, an inverse-square law is any physical law stating that a specified physical quantity or strength is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source of that physical quantity....
but is approximately constant and perpendicular to the disk, so missile trajectories become parabolic
Parabolic trajectory
In astrodynamics or celestial mechanics a parabolic trajectory is a Kepler orbit with the eccentricity equal to 1. When moving away from the source it is called an escape orbit, otherwise a capture orbit...
rather than segments of elliptical orbits
Kepler's laws of planetary motion
In astronomy, Kepler's laws give a description of the motion of planets around the Sun.Kepler's laws are:#The orbit of every planet is an ellipse with the Sun at one of the two foci....
. Thus, both the strategic bomber
Strategic bomber
A strategic bomber is a heavy bomber aircraft designed to drop large amounts of ordnance onto a distant target for the purposes of debilitating an enemy's capacity to wage war. Unlike tactical bombers, which are used in the battle zone to attack troops and military equipment, strategic bombers are...
and ICBM "legs" of the nuclear triad
Nuclear triad
A nuclear triad refers to a nuclear arsenal which consists of three components, traditionally strategic bombers, ICBMs and SLBMs. The purpose of having a three-branched nuclear capability is to significantly reduce the possibility that an enemy could destroy all of a nation's nuclear forces in a...
are no longer feasible so nuclear deterrence
Deterrence theory
Deterrence theory gained increased prominence as a military strategy during the Cold War with regard to the use of nuclear weapons, and features prominently in current United States foreign policy regarding the development of nuclear technology in North Korea and Iran. Deterrence theory however was...
breaks down, and the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
takes advantage of this to conquer much of Western Europe.
There are several sub-plots - the exploration of the new world by both superpowers forms much of the major plot: Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Gagarin
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. He was the first human to journey into outer space, when his Vostok spacecraft completed an orbit of the Earth on April 12, 1961....
captains a huge, nuclear-powered Ekranoplan on behalf of the Soviets, whilst the Americans launch cruise liners filled with colonists for distant islands - Madelaine Holbright (initially a housewife) begins an affair with an John Martin, an entymologist who is almost fatally stung by native termites which begin to display signs of intelligence. Cold war
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
tensions between the two super states provide the inbetween plot direction.
A character named Gregor seems to be highly connected with the American Government, and is later shown to be in fact an advanced alien termite with pheromone control, and is guiding the transplanted humanity towards nuclear destruction, to clear the path for the "mock aboriginal termites" that have previously stung Martin.
Eventually Gregor is successful, and humanity is destroyed by their own nuclear missiles - Gregor's intelligence is saved and it is heavily implied that not only has this happened before, but that it will happen again, supporting (but not actually confirming) the second two of the suggested theories.
To explain plot sections and provide background information, Stross makes use of themes that recur in his works - the use of security clearance briefings, and codewords to infer secret levels of information - COLLECTION and RUBY for Missile Gap
Reception
Publishers WeeklyPublishers Weekly
Publishers Weekly, aka PW, is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers and literary agents...
described the novella as a "blend of 1900s H. G. Wells
H. G. Wells
Herbert George Wells was an English author, now best known for his work in the science fiction genre. He was also a prolific writer in many other genres, including contemporary novels, history, politics and social commentary, even writing text books and rules for war games...
and 1970s propaganda, updated for the 21st century in the clear, chilly and fashionably cynical style that lets Stross get away with premises that would be absurdly cheesy in anyone else's hands." Carl Hays in his review for Booklist
Booklist
Booklist is a publication of the American Library Association that provides critical reviews of books and audiovisual materials for all ages. It is geared toward libraries and booksellers and is available in print or online...
called the novel a "bizarre, nevertheless brilliant alternate-history novella featuring a protracted U.S.–Soviet cold war."