The First Grand Survey

Poul Anderson, The Earth Book Of Stormgate (New York, 1979).

 "Wings of Victory" (pp. 3-22) 

"Our part in the Grand Survey had taken us out beyond the great suns Alpha and Beta Crucis." (p. 3)

"You must remember how new the hyperdrive is, and how immense the cosmos. The organizers of the Grand Survey were too wise to believe that the few neighbor systems we'd learned something about gave knowledge adequate for devising doctrine. Our service had one law, which was its proud motto: 'We come as friends.' Otherwise each crew was free to work out its own procedures. After five years the survivors would meet and compare experiences." (p. 4)

 

Observations

A five year mission, as in Star Trek.

 

"...the few neighbor systems..." include those of Cynthia, Woden and Hermes.

Comparison of experiences would inform the second and any subsequent Grand Surveys.

Introduction (pp. 23-25) to "The Problem of Pain" (pp. 26-48)

"The same expedition which made the Discovery of Ythri had chanced upon Avalon." (p. 24)

 

"A Little Knowledge" (pp. 292-315)

"They found [Paradox] during the first Grand Survey." (p. 292)

 

"Day of Burning," (pp. 318-367)

"A ship of the Grand Survey noted [a massive star's] existence. However, the crew were more interested in a neighbor sun which had planets..." (p. 318)

"When the Survey team arrived [on Merseia], the Wilwidh culture stood on the brink of a machine age." (p. 335)