The Chase of the Golden Meteor

The Chase of the Golden Meteor (French: La Chasse au météore) is a novel by Jules Verne, a pioneer of hard science fiction. Although it is among his final works, the book is regarded less as a piece of hard science fiction and more as a social satire that mocks greed, monomania, and vanity. Verne initially wrote the story in 1901, then revised it before his death, but it was not published until 1908—three years after he died—making it one of seven novels released posthumously.

The plot centers on a rivalry between two amateur astronomers living in the same small American town. Both spot a new meteor and try to claim credit for its discovery. The meteor, it turns out, is made of gold and therefore extremely valuable. A third eccentric amateur scientist, an inventor, creates a device that can make the meteor fall wherever he chooses.

The book was heavily edited by Verne’s son, Michel Verne. Michel is known to have added the inventor character, emphasized the romantic subplot, and expanded the novel from 17 to 21 chapters, among other changes.

The story’s future world includes two political predictions that did not come true in the century after publication: first, the United States consists of 51 states, with a flag bearing 51 stars (compared to the 45 states that existed in 1905, when Verne died); second, Greenland becomes an independent, fully sovereign nation.

**Publication history**

In 1909, Grant Richards (London) published the first English translation, titled *The Chase of the Golden Meteor*, based on Michel Verne’s version, in a fully illustrated edition. In 1965, I.O. Evans released a condensed version as *The Hunt for the Meteor* in the Fitzroy Edition. The original French version was published in 1986 by the Société Jules Verne. In 1998, Bison Books (University of Nebraska Press) republished *The Chase of the Golden Meteor* as a fully illustrated replica of the Grant Richards edition, with an introduction by Gregory A. Benford. In 2006, Bison Books published *The Meteor Hunt*, translated by F. P. Walter and Walter James Miller from Verne’s original text.