Sailors Passing Through
What books will live on other worlds?
There is a library in outer space.
Amidst the rumble of compressors, propellant valve clicks, and the omnipresent radio chatter, is a small collection of books. Amassed by astronauts carrying them aboard for leisure, the International Space Station’s library is proof the printed voice can wander to the stars. What books will we bring to other worlds?
There are no trees yet on our moon’s surface, nor flowing water to form papyrus. Should we want them, all our books will come from Earth.
Scripts in Sand
The Library of Alexandria is the best known repository from the ancient world. Founded circa 300 BCE, the library was not the first of its kind. Archiving and curating texts can be dated to 2500 BCE by the Ancient Sumerians. The first library was as old to Alexandria as they are to modern day.
During the early centuries BCE, ships entering Alexandria with books would be compelled to turn them over to the library’s scribes. A swiftly made copy would be returned to the provider, while the original would be archived. It is to this practice we owe preservation of early manuscripts of The Odyssey and The Iliad; favourites of sea-faring adventurers. The greatest library of the ancient world was built by sailors passing through.
The library orbiting Earth contains a plurality of science fiction; contained within the very vessels they imagine.
Made from the plant of the same name, papyrus fuelled Alexandria’s centralization of knowledge. Today, paper is still manufactured from pulverized wood, and the process is not terrifically more sophisticated. Printing books relies on trees and water - neither in particular abundance off our world.
Local Orbital Branch
A friend of mine searches for a rare series of books to complete his collection. The Horus Heresy in total spans 54 volumes - many limited runs and many out of print. To his advantage though, he lives on the same planet these books were published. How difficult would his search be on Luna?
There is not space, nor resources sufficient to produce books on the ISS. There is no printing press hidden among the science experiments in ESA’s Columbus module, nor crammed alongside life support in NASA’s Tranquility.
NASA’s recent Moon Base plan does not include a lunar library (feel free to double check). There are no trees yet on our moon’s surface, nor flowing water to form papyrus. Should we want them, all our books will come from Earth.
And so they have.
Astronauts visiting the Moon and Mars will have drunk the writings of Homer and Asimov, but also many more I will never know.
Dust To Dust
As of 2008, there were nearly 100 books cataloged aboard the International Space Station. Among them include works of Kim Stanley Robinson, Jules Verne, and Isaac Asimov. Despite the bend towards science fiction, other authors are up there. To stay within a letter: Darwin, Dickens, and Dostoevsky.
This off-world archive is happenstance more than preservation. It is not an intentional catalog of works, but rather the preferences of the then visiting astronauts. I have provided the list of titles and authors at the end of this article for those who wish to browse.
Come the eventual de-orbiting of the International Space Station, the greatest structure our species has yet built will be brought to rest in the ocean. Passing through the atmosphere will burn most of its aluminum and solar cells away; along with the pages inside. Like the ruin of Alexandria, our first orbital library will be fuel for flames.
Sparks Fly Upward
There are no current plans for a lunar library, but there were also never any for the ISS. The library onboard the space station was created by the same sailors that built Alexandria’s. Be it the epics of Homer or the empires of Asimov, we take with us what inspires. The library orbiting Earth hosts a plurality of science fiction; contained within the very vessels they imagine.
Astronauts visiting the Moon and Mars will have drunk the writings of Homer and Asimov, but also many more I will never know. Libraries may burn, but the sailors voyage on. What writers will they bring with them?
Library of the ISS
Below is an adapted and tab-delimited catalog of the “Books for recreational /off-duty reading at the ISS”. This list was obtained via a FOIA request in 2008 and the collection is not regularly monitored.
Source: NASA List of books, movies, television shows, and music maintained on the International Space Station (ISS) for recreational/off-duty consumption, 2008, NASA Johnson Space Centre. https://www.governmentattic.org/docs/ISS_Media_2008.pdf
Author Title
Anderson, Kevin J. Canals in the Sand
Anthony, Piers A Spell for Chameleon (Xanth #1)
Anthony, Piers Key to Havoc (ChroMagic #1)
Anthony, Piers Source of Magic (Xanth #2)
Asaro, Catherine A Roll of the Dice
Asaro, Catherine The Moon’s Shadow
Asimov, Isaac Foundation & Empire (Book 1)
Asimov, Isaac Foundation & Empire (Book 2)
Bain, Darrell A Strange Valley (Strange Valley #1)
Bain, Darrell Alien Infection
Bear, Greg Darwin’s Radio
Blake, Michael The Holy Road
Boorstin, Daniel J. The Americans: The Colonial Experience
Boorstin, Daniel J. The Americans: The Democratic Experience
Boorstin, Daniel J. The Americans: The National Experience
Brooks, Terry Jarka Ruus (High Druid of Shannara #1)
Brooks, Terry The Sword of Shannara Trilogy (Omnibus Edition)
Brooks, Terry Tanequil (High Druid of Shannara #2)
Brown, Dan Angels and Demons
Brown, Dan The Da Vinci Code
Bryson, Bill Bryson’s Dictionary for Troublesome Words
Bujold, Lois McMaster Barrayar: A Vorkosigan Novel
Bujold, Lois McMaster Brothers in Arms: A Vorkosigan Novel
Bujold, Lois McMaster Cetaganda: A Vorkosigan Novel
Bujold, Lois McMaster The Curse of Chalion
Bujold, Lois McMaster Ethan of Athos
Bujold, Lois McMaster Falling Free
Bujold, Lois McMaster The Mountains of Mourning: A Vorkosigan Novel
Bujold, Lois McMaster Paladin of Souls
Bujold, Lois McMaster The Spirit Ring
Bujold, Lois McMaster The Vor Game
Bujold, Lois McMaster The Warrior’s Apprentice: A Vorkosigan Novel
Caldwell, Ian & Thomason, Dustin The Rule of Four
Conroy, Robert 1901
Crichton, Michael State of Fear
Croswell, Ken The Universe at Midnight
Darwin, Charles The Origins of Species
Dickens, Charles A Tale of Two Cities
Dickens, Charles A Tale of Two Cities
Donaldson, Stephen R. The Man Who Killed His Brother
Dostoevsky, Fyodor The Brothers Karamazov
Durant, Will Heroes of History
Finch, Sheila Ceremony After a Raid
Gorden, S. A. The Eyes of an Eagle: A Novel of Gravity Controlled
Grudem, Wayne Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine
Hamilton, Jay, Madison The Federalist Papers
Hamilton, Peter F. Pandora’s Star
Heller, Joseph Catch As Catch Can
Jordan, Robert Glimmers: Prologue to Crossroads of Twilight
Jordan, Robert Snow: The Prologue to Winter’s Heart
Krakauer, Jon Under the Banner of Heaven
Kranz, Gene Failure Is Not an Option
Krauss, Lawrence Atom
LaRocca, Michael Who Moved My Rice
le Carré, John Absolute Friends
le Carré, John The Constant Gardener
le Carré, John Single & Single
Lewis, C.S. / Klein A Year with C.S. Lewis: Daily Readings from His Classics
McCullough 1776
Oxford University Press Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy
Oxford University Press Oxford Dictionary of World History
Patterson, James London Bridges
Robbins, David Apocalypse Troll
Robinson, Kim Stanley The Years of Rice and Salt
Sedaris, David Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
Shaara, Jeff Gone for Soldiers: A Novel of the Mexican War
Silbiger, Steven The Ten-Day MBA
Simmons, Dan Winter Haunting
Turtledove, Harry Counting Up, Counting Down
Turzillo, Mary A. Mars Is No Place For Children
Various Analog Science Fiction and Fact (May 2004)
Various Analog Science Fiction and Fact (June 2004)
Various Analog Science Fiction and Fact (July/Aug 2004)
Various Analog Science Fiction and Fact (Oct 2004)
Various Analog Science Fiction and Fact (Nov 2004)
Various Analog Science Fiction and Fact (Dec 2004)
Various Asimov’s Science Fiction (Apr/May 2004)
Various Asimov’s Science Fiction (June 2004)
Various Asimov’s Science Fiction (Aug 2004)
Various Asimov’s Science Fiction (Oct/Nov 2004)
Various Asimov’s Science Fiction (Sept 2004)
Verne, Jules 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
Verne, Jules Around the World in 80 Days
Webb, James Lost Soldiers
Weber, David Ashes of Victory (Honor Harrington #9)
Weber, David Echoes of Honor (Honor Harrington #8)
Weber, David Empire from the Ashes (Dahak #4)
Weber, David Honor Among Enemies (Honor Harrington #6)
Weber, David The Honor of the Queen (Honor Harrington #2)
Weber, David In Enemy Hands (Honor Harrington #7)
Weber, David On Basilisk Station (Honor Harrington #1)
Weber, David Short Victorious War (Honor Harrington #3)
Weber, David & Flint, Eric Crown of Slaves (Honor Harrington #15)
Weber, David & Ringo, John March to the Sea (March Upcountry #2)
Weber, David & Ringo, John March to the Stars (March Upcountry #3)
Weber, David & Ringo, John March Upcountry (March Upcountry #1)
Williams, Walter Jon Witness
Wodehouse, P. G. The Jeeves Omnibus
Yalom, Irvin D. The Schopenhauer Cure