A City on Mars is shortlisted for the 2024 Royal Society Science Book Prize, supported by the Trivedi Family Foundation
About the book
Earth is not well. The promise of starting life anew somewhere far, far away – no climate change, no war, no Twitter - beckons, and settling the stars finally seems within our grasp. Or is it? Bestselling authors Kelly and Zach Weinersmith set out to write the essential guide to a glorious future of space settlements, but after years of original research, and interviews with leading space scientists, engineers and legal experts, they aren't so sure it's a good idea. Space tech and space business are progressing fast, but we lack the deep knowledge needed to have space-kids, build space-farms and create space nations in a way that doesn't spark conflict back home. In a world hurtling toward human expansion into space, A City on Mars investigates whether the dream of new worlds won't create a nightmare, both for settlers and the people they leave behind.
With deep expertise, a winning sense of humour and art from the beloved creator of Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal, the Weinersmiths investigate perhaps the biggest questions humanity will ever ask itself - whether and how to become multiplanetary.
About the author
The Weinersmiths, a wife-and-husband research team, co-wrote the New York Times bestselling Soonish. Dr. Kelly Weinersmith is adjunct faculty in the BioSciences Department at Rice University. Her research has been featured in The Atlantic, National Geographic, BBC World, Science, Nature and more. Zach Weinersmith makes the acclaimed webcomic Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal. His work has been featured in The Economist, The Wall Street Journal, Slate, Forbes, Science Friday and elsewhere.
