pre-90s - Trip to star that doesn't exist

[azulus]

I remember reading a great story (maybe a short story or novella) about a group of people sent on a one way trip to a distant star, only to be told it doesn't exist after they reach the halfway point. I seem to recall them continuing onward and creating the star somehow, only to return to Earth at the precise right moment to save humanity.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, cheers!

[chrispenycate]

The star existed; but there was no planet round it?

Try Fred Pohl, "Starburst". And they didn't go back, merely sent something (I seem to remember it stopped nuclear fission, so Hbombs wouldn't work).

And sending back communications in huge numbers (sums of factorials) where the first letter was the number of multiples of the first prime factored into it, the second of the second prime, and so on.

[monkeypooper]

Originally Posted by chrispenycate

The star existed; but there was no planet round it?

Try Fred Pohl, "Starburst". And they didn't go back, merely sent something (I seem to remember it stopped nuclear fission, so Hbombs wouldn't work).

And sending back communications in huge numbers (sums of factorials) where the first letter was the number of multiples of the first prime factored into it, the second of the second prime, and so on.

YEAH i was going to say that jk

[otistdog]

I recognized this as the plot to "The Gold at Starbow's End", which was apparently the original short story that spawned the novel "Starburst." Chrispenycate is probably right, unless you have any other details to add that don't fit.

[northernexposure]

Seems somewhat similar to Frank Herbert's "Destination Void."