Rendezvous with Rama

by Arthur C. Clarke

and

Rama II

The Garden of Rama

Rama Revealed

by Arthur C. Clarke and Gentry Lee

Rama II: "Offers one surprise after another." - New York Times

The Garden of Rama: "A fascinating mix of technology and humanity, soaring high into the mysteries of the universe and far into the depths of the soul." - Chicago Tribune

Arthur C. Clarke is well known for his many stories, and of course the movies "2001" and "2010" with their larger-than-life depictions of what space travel would be like, and the possible aliens and alien technology we might encounter. With the first "Rama" novel he introduced us to the technology of Earth in 2130 and what would happen if a large (several kilometers in length) cylindrical spaceship came to our system and we sent a crew inside to investigate.

The story telling ability of Mr. Clarke is phenomenal. He presents us with a ship so large that it can contain not only vast fields, and entire cities, but is capable of weather patterns! Clarke starts us with the encounter beginning far out in the solar system, and as the ship nears the Sun the lights come on, enabling the small group of explorers to finally see the enormity of the engineering of the aliens - 3 distinct sections running lengthwise with a "cylindrical sea" about cutting the ship in half, which is holding a single city with buildings rivaling any earth city in height! As the ship nears the Sun everything warms up, and the melted sea causes hurricanes.

Also, as any ship might need, there is a 'crew' of sorts, and the earthlings follow them into the outer shell for some wondrous adventures, along with problems encountered as they try to investigate the apparent drive mechanism, cross the sea, and interact with the 'crew'.

As the ship rounds the Sun and picks up speed, our astronauts depart, leaving us with one thought - "the Ramans do everything in threes".

MANY YEARS LATER, Mr. Clarke works with Mr. Lee to continue our story:

The next three novels could each also stand on their own, but are far better if you read them in order, following the adventures in Rama through the eyes of astronaut Nicole des Jardins.

Nicole is part of the new crew to check out the second coming of the Rama ship, now 70 years after the departure of Rama I. Along with a fresh mission, to spend more time inside to discover the origin of the ships and where they are going, the crew of 12 further explores the island city and the bowels of the ship itself, and happen upon a room with an interface screen which might allow them communicate with the creators of Rama. Unfortunately 3 of the crew die in strange circumstances, and a course change of the ship making it head straight for Earth, prompting the heads of governments to launch an attack on Rama before it can crash, as it is larger than any civilization-destroying meteor known to have struck in pre-historic times. But they have also found some alien lifeforms, though not the builders, so not everyone believes the ship intends to crash - Nicole, Michael O'Toole, and Richard Wakefield stay behind in an attempt to communicate with the ship and let it know that atomic weapons are soon to be launched against it. Their success is limited, but also seals their fate - they will be staying onboard when the ship leaves the Sol system.

As the years pass, 5 children are added to the human passenger list. And the three are greeted by both friendly and hostile alien passengers as they explore more and more of the ship. Thirteen years later, after traveling at relativistic speeds (significant percentage of light-speed) they arrive at the "Node" in orbit around the star we call Sirius, and find a vast complex where the Rama spacecraft was torn apart, refurbished, and outfitted for several distinct species. A signal was then sent to Earth announcing the ship's intention: a complete habitat has been made on one of the sections of the ship, and two thousand volunteers are invited to come live so that the Ramans may study them.

New Eden was just that - a garden where everything could be experienced just as if back on Earth. Fields for growing food and a lake for both water supply and recreation, and an artificial Sun crossed overhead. A government was elected, and all went fine for a while. But people being people, having everything is not enough. Someone has to eventually believe that they are superior to all others, so they must take over control, and several crises occur after three years, setting up circumstances for a earth tycoon to set up a ruthless society. And of course, since man is the supreme being of the universe, they set out to escape from their own compound and invade any others that are onboard, vowing to kill anything, and anyone, in their way.

Seeing that their is no way to stop the takeover Richard escapes to the cylinder's shell. It had been his idea during the refurbishment to set up several methods of escape in case things went badly. Nicole, having been sentenced to death for opposing the new rulers, is helped to escape and takes some of her family along. Living outside the provided dome, they make contact with the other aliens on the ship, and found that one of Nicole's daughters had been genetically engineered to be able to translate the language (here Clarke shines as he explains how the language is constructed, giving insight to the complexities of our own speech and how we will have to change our way of thinking if we hope to make contact with other worlds) of one of the species. They were able to form an alliance so as to defend against the ruthless humans from above, but the battle would be very bloody for both sides.

However, regular status reports were sent from the ship to the Node and let them know how bad things have become, so they intercede.

At the Node again, the inhabitants are removed, the ship refurbished, and setup to go find another space-faring race. But Nicole has much more to experience.

I don't want to give away too much of the story, but the reason behind the ships, the extent to which they wander, is an immense concept. Clarke gives us a vision of and reason for the universe by explanations to Nicole by one inhabitant of the Node, and how, perhaps, he would like for the future of mankind to turn out. But if you want Sci-Fi that makes you think and not just jump from one battle or improbable situation after the next, "Rama" is an excellent selection.

I just wish it hadn't taken 20 years to complete the story!

Charles Miller