Star One: Tycho City Survival

by Weil, Raymond L.

  “There’re great,” agreed Isaac, looking over toward the dome. He had helped to design them. “It makes mining out on the lunar surface a lot more practical if the crews have somewhere they can go to take their spacesuits off and relax for a while.”

  Mase nodded. At the larger mining sites, a series of the domes were used for the bigger crews. Some of the crews would stay out at the mining sites for an entire week before coming back to Tycho City for a well deserved break.

  Mase and Isaac continued to watch the mining operation for several more hours until they were satisfied with the progress. Then Mase returned to Tycho City and Isaac went on to inspect several more of the nearby mining operations that were on his list for the day. Isaac tried to visit each mining site at least once a week. He also required a daily status report from the supervisor of each one.

  -

  Back at the mass driver, Jase stared with satisfaction at the work being done. Under recommendations from some of the other engineers, they had added several more magnetic coils to the mass driver rail. That way, if one failed, the spare coils could be kicked in. The new induction relays were almost completely installed and the rail had checked out as still being stable.

  Jase made his way carefully back down the rail to the metal building that covered the beginning of the mass driver. In the light lunar gravity, you had to watch every step. It was extremely easy to lose your balance and fall if you didn’t pay close attention to what you were doing. He entered the building through the airlock and took off his cumbersome spacesuit. Stepping inside, he saw Jackson Pierce standing over to one side, talking to several men.

  “I know all the cargo pods are full,” Jackson was saying in an exasperated voice. “We just need to figure out some way to store the excess material until we can load it into a cargo pod later. If we can’t, then we’re going to shut down all the mining operations!”

  “The only thing I could suggest is to dump it outside on the ground,” the man responded, frowning. He knew this would be a lot of extra work. “We have a loader we could use to pick it up and then bring it in to be loaded into the pods.”

  “But that means we will have a lot of lunar dust on the refined metals,” one of the others objected, shaking his head. Everyone disliked the lunar dust. It tended to get into everything and was hard to remove.

  Jase walked over and joined in on the conversation. “We can rig up some spray nozzles to wash the material off before we load it,” he commented. “It shouldn’t be that difficult. We already wash off the Moon Buggies and other equipment. We can do the same with the refined metals. It will put a strain on our water recycling system, but I think it can handle it.”

  “I guess so,” replied one of the men dubiously. “It just means more work for all of us.”

  “What’s new about that?” another one grumbled in a loud voice. “We always get stuck with the crap!”

  “I’m sure I can get some type of bonus approved for all the extra work you are being asked to do,” interjected Jackson, knowing this would help to encourage the men.

  “A bonus,” the complaining worker said, his face breaking into a broad smile. “Now that sounds more like it!”

  The others nodded their heads in agreement. They were already well paid, but to receive a bonus for doing this extra work sounded encouraging.

  Jackson turned to Jase. “How much longer until all the repairs are completed?”

  “Two more days,” answered Jase, thinking about what still needed to be done. “Plus one more day to check out the system with a few test firings of the rings. We can launch a few pods in the tests.”

  “Let’s make sure those pods are for Star One. They really need the raw material,” Jackson ordered. Commander Colton had been adamant about that.

  -

  Back in Tycho City, Mase had returned to his office to finish his final report for the day, and then it would be off to eat a relaxing meal. He looked up from his desk as Linda walked in.

  “I’m taking off for the day. Is there anything else you need?”

  Linda enjoyed working for Mase, and she found her duties both interesting and challenging. It was difficult being away from her family, but she tried to speak with them at least twice a week. Her sister Karen was always full of questions about Tycho City and Linda’s job.

  There had never been a dull moment since she had gone to work for Mase. She had told Karen all about her new job and Linda thought she could detect a tinge of jealousy in her sister’s voice. Karen was going to college at the University of Kansas.

  “No, Linda; I’m just going to finish up this last report and then I’m through also,” replied Mase, gesturing toward his computer screen. “I’m nearly done.”

  “Margaret mentioned that Steve has slowed production of Luxen in the fusion reactor until we can get the mass driver back online.”

  “I was afraid of that,” responded Mase, leaning back in his chair and stretching his back. “Between the mass driver being down and now Star One reducing production of Luxen, we are making a lot of companies on Earth unhappy.”

  “Things should be back to normal in a few more days,” responded Linda, trying to sound positive and upbeat. “The mass driver will be back online, Star One will be back to full production of Luxen, and the Farside array will be fully operational.”

  After a few more words, Linda left to go home. Thinking about the Farside array, Mase remembered that he had asked LeAnn Kelly to send him some photos from the Albertson reflector. Checking his computer, sure enough there was a file from LeAnn marked Albertson reflector. Clicking on the file, Mase watched as the photos came up on his computer screen.

  The first few photos were of distant nebula, awe inspiring in all their colors and myriads of shapes. The next photos were of galaxy clusters and were just as breathtaking. There was no doubt in Mase’s mind that the Albertson reflector was going to rewrite astronomy. The Farside array would probably do the same thing. He settled back in his chair and spent the next few minutes viewing all the photos that LeAnn had sent.

  -

  Two hours later, Mase walked down the main concourse in Tycho City. Vehicle traffic was restricted from the downtown area and access was mostly by on foot. As Mase walked past the numerous small shops and eating places, he marveled at how everything looked so Earth normal. This was something he never grew tired of. People were out and about shopping or taking their families out to eat. People were talking, and Mase could hear the carefree laughter of children. It was hard to believe they were on the Moon. As he walked, people occasionally stopped him and said hello.

  He stopped at a small restaurant and treated himself to a burger and fries before heading home. A decent night’s rest was in order. He knew the next few days would be extremely hectic as they tried to get the mass driver back online.

  -

  Early the next day, Pierre LaRann was in his spacesuit watching intently as the last dish antenna was brought online. He was standing next to his Moon Buggy along with several engineers. They were twelve miles from the array Control Center.

  “That’s the last one,” Andrew Carnegie stated as the antenna dish slowly turned to aim itself toward deep space. Andrew was the chief engineer for the Farside complex.

  “Now we just need to calibrate these dishes,” sighed Pierre as he watched the dish rotating into position.

  “That should only take a couple of days,” Andrew assured him. “By scanning known pulsars, we can use the computers to calibrate the dishes pretty quickly. It shouldn’t be a problem.”

  Pierre gazed out across the desolate landscape of the Moon. The dish antennas were a stark white in color compared to the darker grays of the lunar surface. Since they were currently on the far side away from the sun and only starlight illuminated the landscape, the grays were darker and the shadows were much more pronounced.

  Numerous small craters and hills surrounded them, with the only level areas being the dish antenna sites and the small tracks and roads tha
t connected them. Each dish antenna could be moved on the small tracks. This would allow them to arrange the array in several different configurations to aid in observations.

  The dish antenna finally locked into place, and Andrew was satisfied. “Let’s get back to the Control Center. We can start the final calibrations as soon as we get back.”

  “Sounds great,” replied Pierre, pleased that the array was finally finished. He looked around at all the dish antennas that surrounded him. Years of hard work and planning had brought them to this point.

  In just a few more days, he could get down to some serious astronomical research. There were several recently discovered black holes he wanted to scan. He felt confident that one or both could contain a traversable wormhole. He was already thinking about the new research paper that he was going to write and how it would be received in the science community.

  In moments, all three had climbed into the Moon Buggy. Shortly, they were on their way back to the main Control Center. As they drove, they passed other Moon Buggies going about on routine maintenance checks. The engineers checked the dish antennas several times a day. The array was too costly to allow for any malfunctions.

  -

  Two days later, Mase was at the mass driver waiting for the first test firing. Jase and Jackson were both in the mass driver Control Room with him. The Control Room was located in the large metal building at the base of the rail.

  “All systems show green,” Jase commented as he checked several data screens. “We should be ready to fire.”

  A number of technicians operating the different control stations were watching closely as the magnetic coils were being charged for the first test firing. There were normally six technicians and one control officer in the small Control Room for each firing of the mass driver. The control officer could stop a firing if necessary. The parameters for stopping a firing had been changed drastically, particularly since the incident that had wrecked the mass driver. The control officer now had more authority to stop a firing if he felt there was a potential problem.

  Half a dozen large viewscreens were on the front wall of the Control Center and focused on various sections of the mass driver rail. Everyone was tense and impatient to get the first firing over with.

  Mase glanced around at the busy crew. They were highly efficient at their jobs. Mase had been careful to choose only the best people for the different jobs on the Moon. He folded his arms across his chest and waited patiently for the firing to begin. He hoped everything went smoothly.

  He had promised Jane that the mass driver should be online again shortly. He hoped that he wouldn’t have to break his promise to her. From what she had said earlier, her office was being bombarded with demands as to when the mass driver would be operational. Including Senator Farley, who was threatening to shut the entire operation down permanently if there was another incident.

  “Thirty seconds until full charge,” one of the technicians reported as he adjusted several controls on his console.

  “All systems are normal,” another reported as he studied the data flashing across his computer screen.

  “Twenty seconds to firing.”

  “Ten seconds to firing.”

  “Firing sequence initiated.”

  On the main screen, the mass driver lit up as the first cargo pod was positioned. Then a cargo pod hurtled through the rings as each fired in sequence, increasing the pod’s acceleration. In moments, the pod reached the final ring and was flung off the rail and toward space far above.

  “Escape velocity reached,” the control officer confirmed as he checked a computer data screen. “The pod is on course for Star One.”

  Mase let out a deep sigh of relief. Things seemed to be going extremely well. He didn’t realize how tense he had been waiting for the test firing. It was as if a heavy burden had been lifted from his shoulders. As soon as he returned to Tycho City, he would inform everyone that shipments had resumed. That should quiet some of the upset people on Earth. He would also make a quick call to Steve on Star One, letting him know everything was back to normal with the mass driver.

  “All systems showing normal,” Jase reported as he talked briefly with each technician and the control officer.

  “We will fire a test cargo pod once an hour for the rest of the day,” Jackson commented, pleased that the mass driver was now back in operation. “The first twenty are all bound for Star One.”

  “That should get Star One back to full production on their Luxen orders,” replied Mase, satisfied. Steve and he were close friends, and he wanted to ensure Star One was taken care of before they resumed their shipments to Earth.

  He knew that several shipments of Luxen were consigned to be shipped to Tycho City over the next week. Tycho City shipped raw material to Star One, and Star One in return shipped Luxen back to the Moon.

  Jase walked back over and nodded at the two. “No problems indicated. The launch went very smooth. If the others show the same, we can double the number of launches tomorrow and then return to normal launches the day after.”

  “Sounds good,” replied Mase with a smile. “You and your people have done an outstanding job getting the mass driver repaired and back into operation.” Turning to Jackson, Mase continued. “Tell all of your people they can expect a sizable bonus in their next check.”

  “They will be pleased to hear about the bonus,” Jackson replied with a grin. “Nothing like some extra cash to brighten things up.”

  The crew in the Control Room looked at each other with big smiles. They had heard Commander Colton say a sizable bonus.

  -

  Back at the Farside array, Pierre LaRann’s chief assistant, Adam Strong, was frowning at the data on his computer screen. It was showing a series of electromagnetic pulses where none should be. It was a massive burst of x-rays and radio waves. They had been scanning known pulsars and using them to calibrate the system. He quickly double-checked the coordinates and his frown deepened. Adam picked up his phone and called the technician in charge of positioning the array to confirm what the screen was showing. There was obviously something wrong with the system.

  The technician quickly confirmed the coordinates. Adam leaned back in his chair as his puzzlement grew. He called the technician back and requested that the array be held in its current position and focused on the coordinates on the screen. It took a moment to convince the technician that the array was not to be moved. The technician reminded Adam that those particular coordinates did not contain any known pulsars.

  Adam watched his screen closely as data continued to come in. Twice per second, the electromagnetic burst of radiation was being recorded by the array. It was a pulsar where none should be. He knew that only a neutron star, rotating rapidly around its axis, could create this type of radiation burst. Something wasn’t right, or he had found a new pulsar.

  Adam contacted several other technicians and requested that they begin trying to pinpoint the exact distance to the electromagnetic burst. Adam knew that it was probably in another galaxy, but he was surprised by its strength. He also contacted Andrew Carnegie and asked that he double check the equipment, which was currently receiving the data. This was too important a discovery to take any chances with. He wanted to confirm that all the equipment was working properly before he contacted LaRann. He was already wondering what he would name it since he was the discoverer. He smiled briefly at the thought of getting to put his name on the discovery.

  Adam leaned forward in his chair and began studying the data carefully. He wanted to be certain of what the readings were telling him before he spoke with Professor LaRann. He knew that the professor would be excited about this new pulsar since it would be the first major discovery made by the array. He also smiled, knowing that he had beaten Pierre and LeAnn to the first significant discovery.

  His phone rang, and he picked it up. Moments later, his face turned pale as one of the technicians reported that the computer tracking program had put the neutron star at less the fi
fteen billion miles from the sun.

  “That’s not possible!” he spoke back to the computer technician feeling a little irate. “We would have detected a neutron star at that range long ago. Your numbers have to be wrong!” This was starting to sound as if it was a computer glitch or equipment malfunction after all. He began feeling disappointed that this might not be an actual discovery.

  The computer technician assured Adam that his numbers were correct. He had run them twice.

  “Run them again!” Adam demanded, his eyes growing wide at the possible ramifications if the technician was right. There had to be something wrong.

  A few minutes later, the phone rang again. The computer technician had run the numbers through Farside’s main computer system. The results were the same. The electromagnetic radiation source was only fifteen billion miles away. Not only that, but Andrew Carnegie had confirmed that all the equipment was working properly.

  Adam leaned back in his chair and ran his hand across his brow. He felt an icy chill run down his back. If this source was indeed a neutron star and it was that close to the solar system, it could pose some dangerous consequences. He began to feel worried for his family on Earth. He no longer wanted his name on this discovery.

  Reaching forward with a shaking hand, Adam put in a call to Pierre LaRann. Adam suspected that LaRann would take a lot of convincing. Hell, he wasn’t convinced himself even though he was the one who had made the discovery. If this was a neutron star, Adam knew that life for everyone was about to change drastically.

  Chapter Four

  Pierre LaRann, LeAnn Kelly, and Charles Turner stared at Adam Strong in disbelief. For a moment, they were all so shocked that they couldn’t even speak. Adam had just repeated to all three of them the computer results from his scans of the recently discovered neutron star.

  “Adam, this can’t be right!” Pierre protested as he gazed at a computer screen displaying the data. “You must have made a mistake in your calculations.”

  “We’ve done scans of that area of space before,” stated Charles, shaking his head. He wondered if Adam had been putting in too many hours and had just misinterpreted the data. They’d all been working hard trying to get the reflector and the array up and running. “We have never picked up anything in that area of space before. There is nothing there. There can’t be! A neutron star just doesn’t appear out of nowhere!”