Eagle's Nest

NFS

15X24
Acrylic & Alkyd

 

I met Stan Schmidt, the editor of Analog Magazine, at a convention in the early '90s and showed him several art samples. He spotted this one in my pile, but it was only half completed. He said if I could get it finished and show it to him, he would like to use it on the cover. I did this, and I am happy to say that it was promptly published. Stan told me that he almost always has the cover reflect a story inside, but in this case he made an exception.

The image shows an alien scientist at the Apollo 11 landing site. He is checking the accuracy and technology of the human race first hand. It's hard for alien scientists to get a hold of human state of the art technology. Lunar landing sites are perfect because one doesn't expect them to come back for a while. Humanity is on the verge of a technological breakthrough, so it is imperative that we keep a close eye on their progress.