Sir Arthur Charles Clarke CBE FRAS 16 December 1917 19 March 2008 was an English sciencefiction writer science writer futurist inventor undersea explorer and television series host He cowrote the screenplay for the 1968 film 2001 A Space Odyssey one of the most influential films of all time Clarke was a science fiction writer an avid populariser of space travel and a futurist of a distinguished ability He wrote many books and many essays for popular magazines In 1961 he received the Kalinga Prize a UNESCO award for popularising science Clarkes science and sciencefiction writings earned him the moniker Prophet of the Space Age His sciencefiction writings in particular earned him a number of Hugo and Nebula awards which along with a large readership made him one of the towering figures of the genre For many years Clarke Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov were known as the Big Three of science fiction Clarke was a lifelong proponent of space travel In 1934 while still a teenager he joined the British Interplanetary Society In 1945 he proposed a satellite communication system using geostationary orbits He was the chairman of the British Interplanetary Society from 19461947 and again in 19511953 Clarke emigrated to Ceylon now Sri Lanka in 1956 to pursue his interest in scuba diving That year he discovered the underwater ruins of the ancient Koneswaram Temple in Trincomalee Clarke augmented his popularity in the 1980s as the host of television shows such as Arthur C Clarkes Mysterious World He lived in Sri Lanka until his death Clarke was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire CBE in 1989 for services to British cultural interests in Sri Lanka He was knighted in 1998 and was awarded Sri Lankas highest civil honour Sri Lankabhimanya in 2005
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