"Falling Onto Mars" is a science fiction

Science fiction

Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 short story

Short story

A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...

 written in 2002 by Geoffrey A. Landis

Geoffrey A. Landis

Geoffrey A. Landis is an American scientist, working for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration on planetary exploration, interstellar propulsion, solar power and photovoltaics...

. It won the 2003 Hugo Award for Best Short Story

Hugo Award for Best Short Story

The Hugo Awards are given every year by the World Science Fiction Society for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was once officially...

.

Plot summary

The story is told from the point of view of a great great grandchild of a prisoner exiled to Mars. The narrator gives a brief history of how prisoners came to be sent to Mars in the first place, and then tells the story of Jared Vargas and his wife Kayla.

External links

• Falling Onto Mars at BestScienceFictionStories.com