Penguin Press Science S.
1 total work
In 1957, a small group of Scientists launched a secret US Government-sponsored attempt to build a 40,000-ton manned spaceship propelled by nuclear bombs. The apparent absurdity of the project is one reason why it ultimately failed. But with its mix of sublime theoretical physics and apparently madcap engineering, its diverse cast of Cold War warriors and idealistic would-be intergalactic pioneers, the mission to build Orion remains one of the most tantalising 'what if?' stories of the twentieth century. The Orion team included the brilliant mathematician Freeman Dyson, George Dyson's father. In "Project Orion", George Dyson pieces together the story his father could only tell him in fragments at the time.