Upon befriending the fifty-two-year-old astrophysicist, Dr. Caleb Oston, twenty-year-old ne'er-do-well, Michael West, suddenly finds himself dropped into a world of dreams and adventure! Taking place among the central mountains of Pennsylvania, the story tells how the two men build a spaceship to explore the solar system. This leads to the Professor (a messianic figure in the story) and West to take the Morning Star on numerous adventures, including traveling to the moon and Mars.

During these trips, West is instructed in the skills needed for observational astronomy while he tackles challenging questions on the clash between faith and science, dinosaurs, the existence of extraterrestrial life, and the biggest of all, the actual birthday of Jesus Christ and how it is derived. While investigating the source of the mysterious lights seen historically in the lunar crater Aristarchus, the crew come across artifacts that lead them to the Cydonia region of Mars and the Neolithic community living deep beneath its iconic face.

After romantic tensions and some light eroticism bring about a clash of cultures, West finds himself needing to rely on himself and the lessons taught him by the Professor to get the Morning Star home. The book ends with West contemplating the true meaning of Earth's competitive governments, the shadowy history of their conflicts, and the malicious invisible hands directing it toward a one-world government and how all this connects to the Morning Star's true purpose. In the end, West is left discovering more about faith, science, and his own manhood than he ever thought possible.