Feeding the world without the sun?

September 6, 2014 10:53 AM

I've always been curious about how we could keep people alive without sunlight after some horrific sunlight-ending event like a supervolcano or nuclear war. The Wool series is an example of something that addresses this. Can anyone recommend other apocalyptic fiction or alt-history that covers this topic specifically, or anything similar? Thank you!
posted by ftm to Media & Arts (8 answers total)

Best answer: The short story "Pail Full of Air" is about a family trying to survive on Earth after losing the sun.
posted by justkevin at 11:09 AM on September 6, 2014 [3 favorites]

Best answer: The Ashfall series is a YA trilogy set in a post-Yellowstone eruption world of darkness and winter. There is a lot of stuff about them figuring out how to support a community with wind-powered greenhouses, etc.
posted by something something at 11:13 AM on September 6, 2014

Best answer: The YA book Winter of Fire is about a future world where sunlight has been blocked due to unspecified environmental damage.
posted by topophilia at 11:33 AM on September 6, 2014 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Age of Miracles sort of fits the criteria, but the horrific event is actually the slowing of the earth so that longer and longer periods of day are available only on one half of the planet while longer and longer nights occur on the other half. There is some discussion about crops, greenhouses, etc.
posted by carrioncomfort at 12:24 PM on September 6, 2014 [1 favorite]

Best answer: The Last Survivors series by Susan Beth Pfeffer is about life after the moon gets knocked slightly out of orbit.
posted by wsquared at 1:51 PM on September 6, 2014

Best answer: The 2009 film "The Road".
posted by H21 at 5:28 PM on September 6, 2014

Seconding "The Road." It's also a book. Both are excellent, dark, and grimy.
posted by lalunamel at 9:44 PM on September 6, 2014 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks y'all! The Road is the only one I've read so it look like I have my hands full.
posted by ftm at 6:15 AM on September 8, 2014