In The Tradition of The Andromeda Strain, "Swift and Relentless. A True Thriller."-Clive Cussler Sunstroke
By: The Sun began to climb the heavens, And with new rays, Smote the surrounding fields.-Homer, The Iliad
Contributors: NASA, US Department of Energy, US EPA, US OTA, US aerospace industry science personnel
Edition: Fourth
Publisher: Ace Books, Diamond, The Berkeley Publishing Group
Published: September 1995
Place of publication: New York, NY
Number of pages: 308
ISBN-13: 9780441002566
Subjects: space solar power
Genres: science fiction based on fact
Work titles: Sunstroke by David Kagan
First sentence: Jim Roberts opened a can of Budweiser and settled back on the worn sofa to watch the governor's speech.
Description: Sunstroke by David Kagan must be made into a block-buster movie right now, because it tells the story of what could actually happen when California's PG&E's space solar power satellite project starts converting the sun's rays into high-intensity microwaves (like in your micro oven) and beams them down to earth for electricity. In the book, this giant satellite is sabotaged by the oil cartel, causing the satellite to wander along its orbit, and fry everything-plants animals and people- into crispy critters. Only science could create a nightmare of such terrifying proportions. Only one scientist can stop it.
Notes: This book is based on the true-life space solar power project that involves deploying immense satellites in earth orbit to convert sunlight in space-where it's very plentiful-into high-intensity microwaves that will be beamed down to earth for conversion into electricity. The dangers of this concentrated microwave beam have been assessed by the US EPA, and they conclude it is capable of cooking all biological matter, including passengers aboard aircraft flying through the beam, as well as interfering with all terrestrial communications, including cell phones, radio and TV broadcasts.