«The Fountains of Paradise» is a Hugo and Nebula Award winning 1979 novel by Arthur C. Clarke.
In the 22nd century visionary scientist Vannevar Morgan conceives the most grandiose engineering project of all time, and one which will revolutionize the future of humankind in space: a Space Elevator, 36,000 kilometers high, anchored to an equatorial island in the Indian Ocean.
Such a structure would be used to raise payloads to orbit without having to use rockets, making it much more cost-effective.
