 First edition cover | |
| Author | Robert L. Forward |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Darrell K. Sweet |
| Language | English |
| Series | Cheela |
| Genre | Science fiction |
| Publisher | Del Rey |
Publication date | 1980 |
| Publication place | United States |
| Media type | Print (hardback & paperback) |
| Pages | 345 |
| ISBN | 0-345-28646-4 |
| OCLC | 5410747 |
| 813/.5/4 | |
| LC Class | PS3556.O754 D7 1980 |
| Followed by | Starquake |
Dragon's Egg is a 1980 hard science fiction novel by American writer Robert L. Forward. In the story, Dragon's Egg is a neutron star with a surface gravity 67 billion times that of Earth, and inhabited by cheela, intelligent creatures the size of sesame seeds who evolve, live, and think a million times faster than humans. Most of the novel, from May to June 2050, chronicles the cheela civilization beginning with its discovery of agriculture to advanced technology and its first face-to-face contact with humans, who are observing the hyper-rapid evolution of the cheela civilization from orbit around Dragon's Egg.
As is typical of the genre, Dragon's Egg attempts to communicate unfamiliar ideas and imaginative scenes while giving adequate attention to the known scientific principles involved.