The moon is more than a giant rock orbiting Earth - it could become a gateway into deeper space! Find out how NASA and other international and commercial agencies are working together to explore and build on the moon.

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Ian Stevens, director of the Deep Space Research Institute, has a hidden agenda. While the rest of the world (including the U.S. government) thinks the DSRI is primarily engaged in pure research, Ian has a few other projects going on, mostly related to manned space travel. With NASA defunct, few scientific probes are being launched, and almost everything that goes up into orbit is government-owned hardware for Earth surveillance. No one even talks about human spaceflight any more and any such projects would be widely condemned, especially when conducted without government supervision.A billionaire in his own right, Stevens has assembled a crew of the best scientists and engineers he can find, including a Nobel Prize-winning physicist who has unlocked the secrets of gravity itself. With engineering genius Mick O'Hara, ex-USAF fighter pilot Lorna Greenwood, and former Navy Seal Charlie Bender to maintain operational security, the DSRI is secretly building and testing gravity-powered spacecraft.Now, if they can just manage to get it done without being noticed by the cyber-spies of the NSA, the watchdogs of Homeland Security, the IRS, OSHA, and a half-dozen other government agencies, they might actually succeed. And they do have the world's smartest computer on their side, one that can fend off cyber-security threats and get them any information they might need from anyone else's network anywhere on the planet.Ultimately, Stevens and his crew want to establish a permanent, self-sufficient settlement on the Moon and use it as a base for further space exploration. What's more, to prevent interference from the U.S. and other Earth nations, they plan to declare their lunar settlement an independent nation... and they are NOT going to apply for membership in the U.N.Welcome to the Lunar Free State.

Ian Stevens, director of the Deep Space Research Institute, isn't interested in conducting research just for the sake of research. While the rest of the world-including the U.S. government-thinks that's the DSRI's sole mission, Stevens is actually interested in more-he wants manned space travel and the colonization of the moon. With NASA defunct, few scientific probes are being launched, and no one even talks about human spaceflight anymore. Stevens is out to change that. A billionaire in his own right, Stevens has assembled a crew of the best scientists and engineers he can find, and the DSRI is secretly building and testing gravity-powered spacecraft.There's just one problem-the project would be widely condemned worldwide, especially since there's no government supervision. Everything they do has to be kept out of sight and away from the prying eyes of the NSA, Homeland Security, the IRS, OSHA, and a half-dozen other government agencies. They've got the world's smartest computer on their side, but will it be enough?As the government gets ever closer to figuring out what the DSRI is doing, Stevens' plan to establish a permanent settlement on the Moon nears fruition. The race is on-will the government find out and shut down the project, or will Stevens be able to implement?the Lunar Free State?

Publisher Description

Ian Stevens, Director of the Deep Space Research Institute, has a hidden agenda. While the rest of the world (including the U.S. Government) thinks the DSRI is primarily engaged in pure research--astronomy, astrophysics, and computer science--Ian has a few other projects going on, mostly related to manned space travel. This comes at a time when NASA is all but defunct, few scientific probes are being launched, and almost everything that goes up into Earth orbit involves government-owned hardware designed for Earth surveillance. No one even talks about human spaceflight any more, and any such projects would be frowned upon by the government, especially when conducted without government supervision. A billionaire in his own right (and with the backing of several multinational corporations), Stevens has assembled a crew of the best scientists and engineers he can find, including a Nobel Prize-winning physicist who has unlocked the secrets of gravity itself. With engineering genius Mick O'Hara, ex-USAF test pilot Lorna Greenwood, and former Navy Seal Charlie Bender to maintain operational security, the DSRI is secretly building and testing several gravity-powered spacecraft. Now, if they can just manage to get it done without being noticed by the cyber-spies of the NSA, the watchdogs of Homeland Security, the IRS, OSHA, and a half-dozen other government agencies that might be upset over their activities, they might actually succeed. And they do have the world's smartest computer system on their side, one that can fend off threats to their own cyber-security and get them any information they might need from anyone else's electronic systems anywhere on the planet. Ultimately, Stevens and his crew want to establish a permanent, self-sufficient settlement on the Moon, and use it as a base for further exploration of the solar system. What's more, to prevent interference from the U.S. (and other Earth nations) they plan to declare their lunar settlement an independent nation... and they are NOT going to apply for membership in the U.N. Welcome to the Lunar Free State...

In 2041 twelve-year-old Dashiell Gibson's a resident of Moon Base Alpha, and at the moment he's faced with a number of problems: coping with the nasty Sjoberg twins, finding out how the commander of the base has managed to disappear from a facility no bigger than a soccer field, and dealing with the alien Zan, who communicates with him telepathically from afar--and who's hiding a secret which may threaten the whole Earth.