In 2017 astronomers in Hawaii discover a black hole heading in our general direction. Black holes, tiny in physical size but containing
enormous concentrations of mass, neither radiate nor reflect light, so this one will not be detected until it is almost upon us. By pure
unlucky chance it will pass through our solar system, and while it will not hit us, its powerful gravitation will tear the solar system apart,
sending the sun and each planet off in its own direction. In 2023, astrophysicists tell the world, the Earth will fly further and further
from the sun and will eventually become so cold and dark that everything unprotected on the surface of our planet will die.
Will this mean the extermination of humankind and, in fact, all life on Earth? Not necessarily. The world has six years to come up with a
solution, and every government with the resources to do so begins efforts to save at least some of its citizens. For the United States and
other developed nations, that means mobilizing their best and brightestto design enormous underground cities and to build as many of them as possible before the Earth freezes. And many private citizens make desperate attempts to stay alive by constructing their own shelters.
Once that black hole has passed and the orphaned Earth is drifting alone in space, human civilization will consist solely of isolated
underground communities around the world.
The Black Hole Event is an apocalyptic novel with a unique, scientifically plausible premise. Such a catastrophe is unlikely to happen.
But it could.
