The Eternal Flame

by Greg Egan · first published 2012

"In an alien universe, the generation ship Peerless has set out to save its home world from annihilation. But the Peerless is facing urgent problems of its own. It does not carry fuel to return home, so without a new form of propulsion it will remain stranded in space. A population explosion has stretched life support to its limits, and the biology of the travellers offers only one way to prevent growth: subjecting the women to famine to limit the number of children they bear. When the astronomer Tamara discovers the Object - a massive meteor just within reach - hopes rise that there might f