"The Expanse," a space epic on the Syfy channel, has been renewed for a longer second season.

The Syfy channel's sweeping space adventure "The Expanse" has been renewed for a second season, set to air early in 2017.

The television program is based on a series of books by James S. A. Corey (a pseudonym for authors Dan Abraham and Ty Franck, who we interviewed here and here about the books and about working on the show). The first season will have 10 episodes — five have aired already — but 13 have been ordered for the second season.

The story is set 200 years in the future and follows characters from Earth, Mars and the asteroid belt embroiled in a solar-system-wide mystery. Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, screenwriters from "Children of Men" (2006) and "Iron Man" (2008) are showrunners and writers on the series, and the book authors are involved in writing the show as well.

"'The Expanse' is firing on all cylinders creatively, building a passionate fan base among viewers and critics alike, and delivering on Syfy's promise of smart, provocative science fiction entertainment," Dave Howe, Syfy's president, said in a statement. "We can't wait to see where the story takes us in Season 2."

When the first episode was released before the TV premiere, 4.5 million viewers watched it digitally, and an average of 1.6 million have watched each of the first three episodes as they aired, Syfy officials said.

Episode 6 of "The Expanse" will air tonight (Jan. 12) at 10 p.m. EST.

Email Sarah Lewin at slewin@space.com or follow her @SarahExplains. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.