The Piranha Solution: A Hard Science Fiction Technothriller (Ace of Space Book 1)

by John Triptych

  Stilicho nodded. “Yeah, go on.”

  “Good,” David said. “The next thing is the life support backpack, and they are usually in the same cabinet that houses the helmets. Remember that when you’re in a vacuum there will be plenty of resistance, especially when you use your gloves- it’s going to be hard to grasp anything so you’ve got to work at it. Fortunately, all you have to do is to turn around, stick your back to the pack and put the straps on. Then take the air hose and either plug it at the back of the helmet or at the front, the multiple jacks will work either way- just be sure to turn it on. Got it?”

  “So your body doesn’t explode when exposed to the vacuum of space?”

  David shook his head. “That’s a misconception from Hollywood. You will get exposed to cosmic radiation and eventually freeze to death as your body rapidly cools, but you will die from asphyxia long before that happens. The good news is that you should have a complete recovery if you survive, that’s under the assumption you were only exposed to vacuum for less than ninety seconds.”

  Stilicho glanced over at the opposite display featuring the crab suit. “So no need to go into pre-breathe if I use the hard suit?”

  “Nope,” David said. “The pressure inside of the crab suit is almost equal to the pressure of our habitats on Mars and the transporter ship interior, which is mostly nitrogen and less than thirty percent oxygen.”

  “In that case,” Stilicho said. “Can I have a crab suit put in my stateroom before takeoff?”

  David shook his head as he gestured at another display, this time pointing to what looked like a handheld plastic bag. “This is a barf bag, and they come standard issue in all compartments. It has a dual lining, so you can seal it after placing your mouth on it. Please be sure to close it up after use, because you don’t want your puke floating around with you.”

  Stilicho crossed his arms. “Come on, Dave. You really think I’m gonna get sick up there?”

  “You could,” David said. “Space adaptation syndrome is experienced by half of all space travelers in microgravity. Your body will be confused the moment you get up there and it won’t be able to tell up from down. One thing Errol didn’t tell you is that SAS is responsible for the deflated market of space tourism. After experiencing all the hardship that comes with going to a place where our bodies aren’t adapted to, about half the tourists we’ve brought up there never want to go back out into space ever again.”

  Stilicho nodded. “I see. No wonder he’s under a lot of pressure to get this season’s tourists over there.”

  “I tell you, Stil,” David said. “The colony is hanging on by a thread. This is why Errol is doubling down on the fusion research. With what we’ve got right now, Mars is nowhere near self-sufficient, so unless we get a faster drive that won’t be dependent on synodic transfer orbits every two years, then we may have to pack up and leave Mars for good. That’s the last thing Errol wants to see happening.”

  “Right,” Stilicho said. “I know the stakes.”

  “Good,” David said, pointing to a third display. There was another, thinner bodysuit behind the glass partition. “That is an electrical stimulation suit, or what we call our shock pajamas.”

  Stilicho raised an eyebrow. “And why are you telling me this?”

  “Living in microgravity for extended periods will decalcify your bones and atrophy your muscles,” David said. “You need to engage in at least two hours of full body exercise on a daily basis. Full isometric, isotonic and cardio. In addition to that, I would suggest you wear the shock pajamas when you go to sleep. The inner lining of the garment is studded with wiring which will send an electrical current along to your muscles, causing them to contract without you having to do anything. The sensation is like a slight burning and itching at low levels. Of course, if you’re a sadomasochist, you can bring it up to maximum.”

  “You can’t be serious.”

  David smiled. “I have to admit the first few nights won’t be comfortable, but you’ll get used to it. I’ll have a suit scaled to your size waiting for you in your stateroom at the transporter.”

  Stilicho scowled. “Dave, I’m not wearing it.”

  “You’re gonna have to if you want to keep your muscles,” David said as he began to walk to the end of the corridor. “Come on, follow me.”

  Stilicho accompanied him over to the next wing. A number of displays showed scale models of the rockets and digitized topographical maps of the numerous planets. A huge diagram of the Eridu Colony interior occupied one side of the hall. David walked over to a display featuring a two-foot high model of the multi-purpose interplanetary transporter. The ship resembled a long, smooth white-painted rifle bullet which stood upright on three landing struts.

  “This is the workhorse of the ACE Corp fleet of ships,” David said. “It consists of two stages. The first stage, which is the lower part- is the heavy lift launch system. The upper stage is the multi-purpose space ship, sometimes called a lander or transporter. The first stage is purely engines and fuel, and is designed to launch the ship into orbit, then the second stage detaches and goes on. Both stages are fully reusable, which is a big factor when it comes to cost. Once detached, the first stage will return to earth and land vertically for refueling. If you want to launch it again, all you have to do is to attach another second stage to it, and that can be done in less than an hour. We use chemical drives for orbital launches: a mixture of hydrogen and liquid oxygen, or H-LOX for short.”

  Stilicho peered closer at the model. “So the first stage is fully autonomous?”

  “Exactly,” David said, pointing to the top part of the model. “Now the second stage carries the crew and passengers. There are other types of space ships like tankers which do not carry any passengers or cargo, and substitutes the free interior with more fuel tanks. Our transporters have in-space refueling capability, but you’ll only need one refueling stop for the Mars trip, so that means the transporter will not have to refuel again until it lands on Eridu Colony in the Hellas Basin. The hulls of these ships are made of carbon fiber with advanced polymers made possible through quantum research. The transporters have a four hundred ton payload, while the cargo versions have twice that amount. The one you’ll be riding in has a two hundred passenger seating capacity, though yours in particular will have a lot less, for obvious reasons.”

  “What’s the name of the ship I’ll be on?”

  “The Duran Duran,” David said.

  Stilicho’s eyes opened wide. “The what?”

  “That was Errol’s idea,” David said. “You see, pretty much all the Greek and the old astronomer’s names have been picked. We’ve sent out hundreds of probes and ships over the past few decades and all the corporations started running out of names. There’s been at least a half dozen Argos, Keplers and Magellans out there and everyone was getting confused, so we needed to come up with names that had yet to be used. We’ve used up pretty much every name in literature when it came to naming craters, valleys and other stuff on the planets and moons of our system. Errol always had a fondness for late Twentieth Century rock bands, so we started cataloging our ship names that way.”

  Stilicho sighed. “Well, at least the ship ain’t called the Deee-Lite.”

  It was David’s turn to be confused. “The what?”

  “Never mind, go on.”

  “Okay,” David said. “So, once the transporter is up in high Earth orbit, it’ll make a refueling stop at the orbital propellant depot, then rendezvous with the driveship at the Lagrangian point two, just beyond the moon’s orbit. A Lagrange point is a location in space in which the combined gravitational forces of two bodies- which could be planets, stars, or moons- and allows an object to maintain a stable position relative to them, so no need for continual adjustments to keep the orbit. We already have a drydock and refueling stop for the driveships out at L-point two, but Errol actually has plans to build a permanent off-world space colony there, but he doesn’t have the money for it yet. You’ll be miss
ing the Moon entirely, since you don’t need to go there for this trip.”

  “How long will that take to get to the rendezvous?”

  “Four to five days at full burn,” David said before walking over to another display, this one showing a spaceship that resembled a horizontal broom. “Once there, the transporter will begin automated docking procedures with the driveship.” He pointed at the new spaceship’s long length. “The Duran Duran will attach itself along the spine of the driveship. Once there are sufficient transporters fitted along the length of the driveship, then the real journey begins.”

  Stilicho narrowed his eyes. “How many other transporters will be coming along with my ship?”

  “Three cargo ships will dock along with yours,” David said. “They are needed to resupply the colony, as well as bringing the replacement staff for those in the colony that’s due to transfer back to Earth. Most of the stuff they’re transporting will be for accommodating the tourists who are scheduled to go over the next few days.”

  “Like what kind of stuff?”

  David shrugged. “Oh, the usual hanky-panky tourist stuff. Flavored bath soaps, booze, gourmet frozen food and all that. Our employees in the colony love it when the tourists are gone and they can buy the unused stuff for their personal use at a discounted price. Errol sometimes does giveaways to boost morale in the colony during the off-season times. The tourists are a double-edged sword, they demand attention and disrupt everyday work and research in the colonies, but the supplies they bring over and leave behind are a welcome treat.”

  Stilicho shifted his attention back to the driveship model. “I’m guessing this is a bigger ship then.”

  “Oh yeah,” David said. “The official designation is the Long Range Interplanetary Transport Vehicle, but we call them driveships for short. Each is three times the length of a transporter. Driveships are limited to outer space and cannot land on planets; they are used strictly for ferrying the ships that do.” He pointed to the end of the broom. “They use nuclear thermal rocket engines, or NERVA drives. Attainable core temperature is around three thousand two hundred Kelvin. They can get up to sixteen kilometers per second using atomic hydrogen. Of course, treaties prohibit the use of nuclear powered drives in planetary atmospheres, which is the reason why NERVA drives are only used by driveships and not transporters.”

  “Let me guess,” Stilicho said. “It probably is named Hoobastank, or something like it.”

  “No, the driveship that’s taking you to Mars orbit is called the Wanderer,” David said.

  Stilicho was impressed. “Well, that’s definitely a better name.”

  “Right,” David said. “Now, once the driveship ferries the four transporters to Mars orbit, it will sit there and await the servicing of its NERVA reactor from Phobos station, which will probably take a few hours, since it’s modular and can be separated from the hull. Meanwhile, your ship detaches and heads down to the Martian surface. Mars has a very thin atmosphere so the transporter will be using aerocapture with direct descent. This means the ship will fly sideways for bit- to induce maximum drag- before it uses its gimbals and grid fins to align itself vertically during the final descent. That’s usually the danger point, but it has been done successfully for the past few hundred landings without a crash, so the odds are on your side.”

  “Well that gives me a sense of relief,” Stilicho said.

  “I’m glad you’re so positive,” David said as he started to walk towards the next hall. “Follow me.”

  The adjoining hall was much bigger, for it featured a number of full-sized vehicles and robots on display. Stilicho followed David as they both walked over to where the Martian rovers were parked. The vehicle had six wheels, and the dual glass windshield had a wraparound view from the outside. Two crab suits were sticking out from the sides of the rear airlock.

  “It feels like I’m part of a lecture tour rather than undergoing training,” Stilicho said.

  “That’s because we don’t have the time for any actual training, which involves VR simulators and full classroom instruction,” David said. “I would prefer one of our more trained employees for this trip, but Errol has complete faith in you, so don’t let him down.”

  “So you keep reminding me,” Stilicho said.

  “It would have been nice if we put you through the heavy grav simulators, as well as a suborbital flight demo, but time is of the essence. Normally our spaceflight candidates also go through intense psychological testing and evaluation, so we’re skipping that too,” David said. “I have given standing orders for our flight crew to incapacitate you should you ever go psycho up there, knowing you.”

  “Actually that wouldn’t be a bad idea,” Stilicho said. “With all this crap you’ve told me about just how dangerous spaceflight really is, maybe it’s better you just dope me up, put those electric pajamas on me, and let me snooze for the rest of the trip. Just don’t forget to stick an IV needle in my arm and wake me up when we’ve landed.”

  “You’re nuts,” David said. “An IV drip won’t give you the proper amounts of nutrition to keep your muscles from atrophying, and there’s the problem of bubbles forming because of the microgravity- even though there’s a micron filter in the IV fluid tube, it’s still possible that you can get air embolism. If you got any other dumb ideas, it’s better to let it all out right now.”

  “Oops, scratch that one then,” Stilicho said.

  “I gotta tell you, Stil,” David said. “The UN is really screwing us over with that Child Ban Treaty. We’re working overtime to have it overturned, but it’s tough going, especially with what happened to the Martians.”

  “That’s the nickname that the media people made up towards all the children that were born on Mars, right?”

  “Yeah,” David said. “A total of twenty-three children born on Mars since we first arrived there. Six of them from Mars First, two that we know of from the China colony, five from the Russians, and ten from our own. They grew up sickly and had to be evacuated. Most of them are now living in specialized care facilities because of stunted growth, weak bones and muscles.” He shook his head. “I totally pity the ones from Mars First, they’re all buried somewhere out in the Red Planet.”

  Stilicho looked away. “Maybe we aren’t meant to go out there.”

  “Everyone in ACE Corp believes in what we’re doing,” David said. “We have to. All the achievements we’ve done has inspired a new generation of astronauts, scientists and engineers to go out even further. I know it in my heart that if we could just get past this hurdle, and find a way to bring forth healthy babies on Mars, then we can truly go to the next step and make it a permanent settlement out there. That’s what I believe in and I’m going to fight for it.”

  “So no new babies on the Red Planet since the Martians were evacuated fifteen years ago, eh?”

  “None that we know of,” David said. “Women in the colony are encouraged to use contraceptives and they’re provided free of charge. Anyone who gets pregnant must be transferred out back to Earth on the next available launch, unless they choose to abort it. There’s been rumors that the Chinese are secretly raising a new generation of Martians in their colony, but we have no real proof of that.”

  Stilicho placed his hand on the hood of the rover. “I see. Is this the new vehicles that are currently being driven on Mars?”

  “Yup,” David said. “These Mwevs are six-wheeled drive vehicles. A huge improvement over the first manned rovers that landed on Mars thirty years ago. Back then, the maximum speed was ten kilometers an hour, but these new babies can go up to one hundred and twenty, though it’s not recommended because of the patches of rough terrain in many parts of the planet. If you go close to full speed it’ll be like the Dakar Rally with all the bumps and shakes since there’s no roads out there.” He pointed at the reinforced metallic wheels. “Each wheel can pivot three hundred sixty degrees if necessary. Smartglass on the HUD, along with GPS and a waypoint finder. Lidar and radar, with fully auton
omous driving technology built in.”

  “What’s their range?”

  “Eight hundred kilometers at full charge,” David said. “They have solar cells on the roof, and they re-charge automatically during the day. If night falls and you’re low on charge, go to the nearest waypoint- there’s usually an automated charge station with it where you can juice up. Or you can spend the night in the rover since they have full life support systems, and wait till the sun comes up to charge your batteries again.”

  Stilicho nodded. “Personnel capacity?”

  “They can fit six comfortably,” David said. “Probably double that if you want to crowd it. Though I wouldn’t recommend it since you’ll be taxing the life support systems. The carbon dioxide scrubbers would need to be serviced every few hours, but it can be done. Twenty day’s life-support for around six, and halve that with twelve people. Even with those limitations, you could still travel a fair bit of distance.”

  “How is the waypoint network?”

  “It’s far from complete. In fact, you might say there’s preliminary waypoints that have been erected and that’s it,” David said. “There’s maybe six in and around Hellas Basin, and maybe less in the Chryse Planitia region.”