Earlier today, legendary science fiction writer and future visionary Sir Arthur C. Clarke passed away at the age of ninety in his home in Sri Lanka.  This Washington Post obituary fittingly refers to him as the “unofficial poet laureate of the space age.”

A few months ago he recorded what ultimately turned out to be his final message in this YouTube video “90^th Birthday Reflections” (see this post).  In it, he reflected on his diverse career as a writer, undersea explorer, space promoter and science popularizer.  Of these, he said he hoped to be remembered most as “a writer, one who entertained readers and hopefully stretched their imaginations as well.”

In a testament to the power of social media, a virtual memorial is quickly amassing on YouTube.  The crowd-sourced eulogies range from the personal and profound to the poetic and offer a wide angle view to Clarke’s enduring ability to inspire.

In this YouTube video, famed writer Sir Arthur C. Clarke (2001: Space Odyssey) reflects on his “90 orbits around the sun”, saying in part:

The golden age of space is just beginning and that over the next 50 years space travel and space tourism will one day become as commonplace as traveling to exotic locations on our own planet;

The mobile phone is “turning humanity into an endlessly chattering global family.” And while technological tools help us to gather and disseminate information we still need qualities like compassion and understanding between peoples and nations;

That “real globalization” would mean overcoming our tribal divisions and acting as if we are one family.

His three wishes for his 90th birthday (because hey, when you’re ninety you get to have three wishes!): 1) to see evidence of extraterrestrial life (Clarke has been quoted:”Sometimes I think we’re alone in the universe, and sometimes I think we’re not. In either case the idea is quite staggering”); 2) that we kick our addition to oil; and 3) to see lasting peace established in Sri Lanka (Clarke’s adopted country, where he’s lived for the last 50 years).

Sincere and eloquent thoughts from a great mind who’s been there, imagined that.