Eloise
Waggoner lives with her experience as a special communications technician
on the Supernova Sagitarrii expedition; her job is to communicate with the
Aurigean Lucifer who has the ability to approach the phenomenon much more
closely than the human ship and crew.
Background
Data
This
story is one of the earliest astronomical science fiction stories to speculate
about black holes.
This
story is classic science fiction, a deep, many-layered blending of conventional
science fiction symbols.
The
story revolves around the concept of the black hole:
when a star collapses
it folds in on itself; if it reaches a point of no return where the
gravity pulling on it is stronger than the nuclear and electric forces,
nothing can stop it from collapsing and it becomes a black hole
an intense gravitational
field affects time in the same way that high velocity does; i.e., it
slows time down
the critical diameter--the
point at which there is no turning back--is the Schwarzschild
radius, also known as the event horizon; here
at the event horizon no more information can be transmitted out of the
black hole because gravity has become so strong
the collapse appears
frozen at the Schwarzschild radius
The
story combines careful scientific extrapolation with a romantic tale of
heroic sacrifice and doomed love.
Navigation
Guide
Why
does the story begin in a convent on Luna (the moon)?
Characterize
Captain Szili
the physicist Maznundar
Eloise Waggoner
How are these characters
stereotypical of their roles and gender?
Explain
the nature of the Supernova Sagittarii mission and its potential hazards.
Characterize
Lucifer. What is his role in this mission?
What
happens when the ship makes the jump that brings it closest to the supernova?
What
happens to Lucifer? What happens to Eloise? Why?
Further
Exploration
Christian
beliefs and symbols permeate the story
The title of the
story
The prayer for
the dead
Lucifer--the name
of the Aurigean
Eloise--the name
of the protagonist
The
story focuses on Eloise's relationship with Lucifer
Compare
"Kyrie" to "The
Cold Equations"; both juxtapose sentimental and the coldly
rational elements.
Compare
this story to Frederik Pohl's Gateway
and Larry Niven's Neutron Star,
also featuring black holes.
This
story is one of the earliest astronomical science fiction stories to speculate
about black holes.