According to the plot of Signs of Life, the United Nations has developed a plan for the event of the end of the world due to the protracted hostilities on Earth. Based on the plan, two spacecraft were launched into space the big Hephaestus, who was responsible for the colonization and the more nimble Hermes, created for reconnaissance. Astronomers discovered a planet whose climatic conditions were similar to terrestrial with great potential for creating a human colony. But to fly to her, as it turned out — 18 light years.