Russ Colson is a scientist, teacher, author, and gardener living in northwest Minnesota, far enough from city lights to see the Milky Way and the Aurora Borealis. He writes contemplative and optimistic science fiction with adventure, touches of romance, and a helping of real science. He is a professor emeritus at MSU Moorhead, a former national professor of the year, author of the science fiction novel The Arasmith Certainty Principle (CIBA 1rst Place Category Winner), and coauthor of the science education book Learning to Read the Earth and Sky (NSTA Press, 2016). He has written thoughtful short stories published in Cast of Wonders, Neo-Opsis Science Fiction Magazine, Interzone, Stupefying Stories, Abyss and Apex, and others. He previously worked at the Johnson Space Center in Texas and at Washington University in St. Louis where, among other things, he studied how a lunar colony might mine oxygen from the local rock.