The High Frontier: Human Colonies in Space is a 1976 book by Gerard K. O'Neill, a road map for what the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 might do in outer space after the Apollo program, the drive to place a man on the Moon

Moon

The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...

. It envisions large manned habitats

Space colonization

Space colonization is the concept of permanent human habitation outside of Earth. Although hypothetical at the present time, there are many proposals and speculations about the first space colony...

 in the Earth-Moon system, especially near stable Lagrangian point

Lagrangian point

The Lagrangian points are the five positions in an orbital configuration where a small object affected only by gravity can theoretically be stationary relative to two larger objects...

s. Three designs are proposed: Island one (a modified Bernal sphere

Bernal sphere

A Bernal sphere is a type of space habitat intended as a long-term home for permanent residents, first proposed in 1929 by John Desmond Bernal....

), Island two (a Stanford torus

Stanford torus

The Stanford torus is a proposed design for a space habitat capable of housing 10,000 to 140,000 permanent residents.The Stanford Torus was proposed during the 1975 NASA Summer Study, conducted at Stanford University, with the purpose of speculating on designs for future space colonies...

), and Island 3, two O'Neill cylinders. These would be constructed using raw materials from the lunar surface launch into space using a mass driver

Mass driver

A mass driver or electromagnetic catapult is a proposed method of non-rocket spacelaunch which would use a linear motor to accelerate and catapult payloads up to high speeds. All existing and contemplated mass drivers use coils of wire energized by electricity to make electromagnets. Sequential...

 and from Near-Earth asteroids

Asteroid mining

Asteroid mining refers to the possibility of exploiting raw materials from asteroids and planetoids in space, including near-Earth objects. Minerals and volatiles could be mined from an asteroid or spent comet to provide space construction material , to extract water and oxygen to sustain the lives...

. The habitats were to spin for simulated gravity and be illuminated and powered by the sun. Solar power satellites were proposed as a possible industry to support the habitats.

The book won the 1977 Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science

Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science

The Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science is given annually by the Phi Beta Kappa Society to authors of significant books in the fields of science and mathematics. The award was first given in 1959 to anthropologist Loren Eiseley.-Award winners:-References:...

.

Illustrations

The book featured impressions of life in outer space by a number of artists including Don Davis

Don Davis (artist)

Don Davis is an artist known for his portrayals of space related subjects. His work is characterised by attention to detail and authentic portrayals based on what is known of the subject...

, Rick Guidice, and Chesley Bonestell

Chesley Bonestell

Chesley Bonestell was an American painter, designer and illustrator. His paintings were a major influence on science fiction art and illustration, and he helped inspire the American space program...

.

In popular culture

Many of the concepts illustrated in The High Frontier can be seen in the early series of the anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 franchise Mobile Suit Gundam

Mobile Suit Gundam

is a televised anime series, created by Sunrise. Created and directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, it premiered in Japan on Nagoya Broadcasting Network on April 7, 1979, and lasted until January 26, 1980, spanning 43 episodes...

, which depicts a world where humans have migrated into space colonies. The O'Neill cylinder colony design appears frequently, largely unchanged from its original concept.
The main space station in the popular TV series, Babylon 5

Babylon 5

Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...

, is an O'Neill cylinder.

Criticism

O'Neil's designs for the colonies do not make efficient use of materials in terms of materials used per square meter of living area. For example to hold air at 40% of normal pressure (as O'Neil proposed) with a 5-fold safety margin (traditional in bridges, the most similar civil engineering items), the smallest design, Island one, a 1.6 Km ball, requires a steel shell with 2 metric tons of steel per square meter of shell. In contrast, a habitat made of 10 meter balls requires only 12 Kg per square meter. The habitable area is distributed in different ways in such different designs, but the difference in costs remains huge.

Science fiction writer 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...

wrote a critical essay with a similar title on the feasibility of interstellar space travel and making practical use of various moons and planets in our own Solar System: The High Frontier: Redux.
Stross's criticisms do not directly apply to the O'Neill's "High Frontier" document about colonizing interplanetary space.