Neutron stars in fiction
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The idea of a superdense star composed of neutrons was proposed in 1934. The discovery of pulsars in 1967 popularised the concept.
[edit] Uses in fiction
- Larry Niven may have been first with his short story Neutron Star, which appeared in October 1966.
- The same neutron star plays a minor role in another Larry Niven story, Protector (1973).
- Stephen Baxter's novel Flux (1993) features miniature humans living inside a neutron star.
- Robert Forward's novel Dragon's Egg (1980) and its sequel Starquake (1989) center around intelligent life evolving on a neutron star.
- Death of a Neutron Star is book 17 in a series based on Star Trek: Voyager.
- Alastair Reynolds's novel Revelation Space (2000) features a neutron star named Hades. The star is revealed to be an alien supercomputer later in the book.
- Jon Hundred, main character in Don de Brandt's novel Steeldriver, uses a weapon called the Hammer, made from the core of a neutron star.
- A Neutron Star is the central feature of the Omega-41 system of the video game Freelancer. It emits strong radiation, the result of a nova that took place shortly before humanity arrived in the Sirius Sector.
[edit] Uses in films and television
- In Star Trek: The Next Generation, an episode called Imaginary Friend occurs while the ship is exploring a rare nebula that formed around a neutron star.
- In Stargate SG-1, an episode called Company of Thieves has the Odyssey fighting 3 Goa'uld motherships near a neutron star.
