Autour de la lune

In the mid‑nineteenth century a bold scientific society gathers worldwide support for an unprecedented experiment: firing a massive projectile from a specially built Columbiad cannon so that it will strike the Moon at its nearest point to Earth. Engineers, astronomers and financiers collaborate to design an aluminum shell, a colossal gun, and a powder charge capable of propelling the shot at twelve thousand yards per second, while the public donates millions to fund the venture.

At the heart of the mission stand three daring men—a charismatic club president, a rival naval captain, and a flamboyant French adventurer who volunteers to ride inside the payload. Their rivalry turns to uneasy partnership as the cannon is readied on a Florida plateau, the projectile reshaped into a cylindrical‑conical “air‑ship,” and life‑support systems are installed for the month‑long journey. On a crisp November night, amid a throng of spectators, the cannon roars to life, launching the trio toward the lunar surface with precise timing that promises a historic arrival at the Moon’s zenith.