Bert Gentry Lee (born 1942) is an American scientist, space engineer, and

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

author. He is currently chief engineer for the Planetary Flight Systems Directorate at the

Jet Propulsion Laboratory The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) is a Federally funded research and development centers, federally funded research and development center and NASA field center in the City of La Cañada Flintridge, California, La Cañada Flintridge, California ...

Space career

Lee had engineering oversight responsibility for the twin rover missions to Mars that landed in January 2004, the

Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter ''Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter'' (MRO) is a spacecraft designed to study the geology and climate of Mars, provide reconnaissance of future landing sites, and relay data from surface missions back to Earth. It was launched on August 12, 2005, an ...

(MRO) in 2006, and the Deep Impact and Stardust missions. He was also the chief engineer for the Galileo project from 1977–1988 and director of science analysis and mission planning during the Viking projects. In 2009, Gentry narrated and appeared in Discovery Channel's 2-hour special "Are We Alone?", which examined the possibility of life on other worlds in the solar system.

Writing career

As an author he is best known for co-writing, with

Arthur C. Clarke Sir Arthur Charles Clarke (16 December 191719 March 2008) was an English science-fiction writer, science writer, futurist, inventor, undersea explorer, and television series host. He co-wrote the screenplay for the 1968 film '' 2001: A Spac ...

, the books ''

Cradle Cradle may refer to: * Cradle (bed) * Bassinet, a small bed, often on rockers, in which babies and small children sleep Mechanical devices * Cradle (circus act), or aerial cradle or casting cradle used in an aerial circus act * Cradling (paintin ...

'' in 1989, '' Rama II'' in 1989, '' The Garden of Rama'' in 1991 and '' Rama Revealed'' in 1993. He collaborated with

Carl Sagan Carl Edward Sagan (; ; November 9, 1934December 20, 1996) was an American astronomer, planetary scientist, cosmologist, astrophysicist, astrobiologist, author, and science communicator. His best known scientific contribution is research on ex ...

on the 1980 series ''Cosmos''. ''

Rendezvous With Rama ''Rendezvous with Rama'' is a science fiction novel by British writer Arthur C. Clarke first published in 1973. Set in the 2130s, the story involves a cylindrical alien starship that enters the Solar System. The story is told from the po ...

'' was written in 1972 and Clarke had no intention of writing a sequel. Lee turned the Rama series into a more character-driven story following the adventures of

Nicole des Jardins Wakefield Nicole may refer to: People * Nicole (name) * Nicole (American singer) (born 1958), a contestant in season 3 of the American ''The X Factor'' * Nicole (Chilean singer) (born 1977) * Nicole (German singer) (born 1964), winner of the 1982 Eurovi ...

, who becomes the main character in '' Rama II'', '' The Garden of Rama'', and '' Rama Revealed''. When asked, Arthur C. Clarke said that Gentry Lee did the writing while he was a source of ideas. Lee went on to write three more science fiction novels after ''Rama Revealed''. Two take place in the Rama universe ('' Bright Messengers'', '' Double Full Moon Night'') while one makes several references to it ('' Tranquility Wars'').

Awards

In 2006, he was awarded the Masursky Award for Meritorious Service to Planetary Science by the

Division for Planetary Sciences Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication * Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

of the

American Astronomical Society The American Astronomical Society (AAS, sometimes spoken as "double-A-S") is an American society of professional astronomers and other interested individuals, headquartered in Washington, DC. The primary objective of the AAS is to promote the adv ...

, for his lifetime of contributions to systems engineering of robotic planetary missions. In 2021, he was elected a member of the

National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of ...

for contributions to 20 planetary exploration missions to Mars, Jupiter, asteroids, and comets.

Bibliography

*''

'' (1989) (with Arthur C. Clarke) *'' Rama II'' (1989) (with Arthur C. Clarke) *'' The Garden of Rama'' (1991) (with Arthur C. Clarke) *'' Rama Revealed'' (1993) (with Arthur C. Clarke) *''Bright Messengers'' (1996) *''Double Full Moon Night'' (2000) *''Tranquility Wars'' (2001) *''A History of the Twenty-First Century'' (2003) (with Michael White)

Television

*''Cosmos: A Personal Voyage'' (1980) (co-writer) *''Are We Alone?'' (2009) (narrator) *Living Universe: Journey to Another Stars'' (2018)

References

External links

* * * * * * (segment on Gentry Lee from 1:08:19 to 1:11:09 in video) {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Gentry Living people 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American engineers American male novelists American science fiction writers 1942 births Jet Propulsion Laboratory 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Fellows of Jet Propulsion Laboratory