Hal Clement

Harry Clement Stubbs, known as Hal Clement, was an American science fiction writer born in Somerville, Massachusetts, in 1922 and who died in Milton, in the same state, in 2003. He became one of the leading figures of hard science fiction, the branch that tries to keep its premises consistent with established scientific knowledge. His work matters because it combined technical care with readable storytelling at a time when popular science fiction often sacrificed one for the other.

He studied astronomy at Harvard and, during the Second World War, flew B-24 bombers over Europe. He later taught chemistry and astronomy at Milton Academy for many years. His first published story, 'Proof', appeared in 1942 in Astounding, edited by John W. Campbell, around whom a key group of writers gathered. He published sparingly and irregularly, and his early novels, including Needle and Iceworld, came out between 1950 and 1953.

His best-known book, Mission of Gravity (1954), follows an expedition across Mesklin, a fast-spinning planet so deformed by its rotation that its surface gravity ranges from about 3 g at the equator to about 700 g at the poles. Its natives are centipede-like beings. Clement treated writing as a game in which the reader hunts for scientific errors and the author tries to make as few as possible. He was a frequent guest at science fiction conventions, where he gave talks on writing and astronomy.

In 1998 he was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame, and in 1999 he was named SFWA Grand Master. Mission of Gravity is considered a landmark of the genre and is often recommended as an entry point to scientifically rigorous science fiction for young readers.