Orbital Maneuvers

by R Davison

  “Not good. I didn’t get much of a return, but what it did show is that the cloud has moved into the northern latitudes. I’ll track it more closely on this next orbit.”

  Alexander asked Paul and Ivan, “Is there anything we can help with?” He was feeling somewhat useless at the moment, something he disliked very much.

  “No, not for me. The computer will do all the work now,” Paul said.

  Ivan looked around the room trying to think of something useful they could do, but he too had nothing either for them, or for himself to do, for that matter. Everything was running fine under the watchful eye of the onboard computer systems, eliminating the need for any active monitoring or control at this time. At last the radar display caught his eye.

  “If you want to keep an eye on the radar scan from time-to-time that would be a help.” Ivan nodded toward the display.

  Alexander and Nicholas moved over to the console where Nicholas discussed the operation of the system with Alexander. Having already done his time at the console, Nicholas was familiar with its operation. He also really did not want to watch one more radarscope, anticipating finding yet another object they would have to dodge. After he was sure Alexander was all set, he moved back over to Paul’s console and watched for a few moments until Paul left him in charge and went to check on Jerry.

  Ivan left his console and floated over to Alexander to check on him. “Any problems, comrade?” he asked.

  “No. This has a very nice user interface, which makes it very simple to work. I am continually impressed with the level at which the user interface, on all the systems, has been designed. It is very easy to work with…” Alexander noticed that Ivan was staring blankly into space. “Ivan? Are you okay?” Alexander asked.

  “Oh, yes. I am sorry. I just drifted for a moment. You were saying?”

  “Nothing important,.” Alexander said and turned back to the display.

  “No, you were saying something about the user interface. What was it?”

  “Just that it was very nicely done, that is all.” Still concentrating on the display, he added, “You are worried about Susan. It is very obvious.”

  Ivan blushed, “Well, I am concerned if she is okay. I do not think she should be alone so long. I mean… we should be preparing for departure in the CRV as soon as we receive word from down below.” Ivan could feel the perspiration beading up on his forehead.

  Alexander continued his surveillance of the radar screen and pretended not to notice Ivan’s discomfort. “Ivan, maybe you should see if she is okay. You are right, and we should make sure we are all set when the time comes for us to depart.” Ivan felt relieved with Alexander’s confirmation, but Alexander was not going to let him leave just yet.

  “You really like Susan? I think that too is very obvious.” He smiled a big smile at Ivan, whose face blushed ever redder.

  “Ah, she is a very dear friend…That is all. Why do you say that? Just because I am concerned about her? After all, she is the commander and a crewmember of the mission. You should understand that.” Ivan was slowly edging toward the hatch as he spoke.

  Alexander smiled even broader, flashing his large white teeth. “Ivan, I have known you for many years! It is not what you said, but how you said it! You do not have to defend yourself to me, now go!”

  Ivan smiled at Alexander, and made a mental note to really thank him for his insights once they were back home. He turned and quickly left the compartment.

  Susan could cry no longer. She had no more tears to shed, and her throat was raw from screaming into the towel. Her despair had drained her of all she had. The sobs that wracked her body grew less frequent, as her physical fatigue grew more pronounced.

  Noting the weakness she felt throughout her body, the fleeting thought occurred to her that she probably would not be able to stand if she were on Earth. Laughing aloud, she reminded herself that if she were on Earth she would probably not be alive now, because more than likely she would have been in Florida during the impact.

  “Maybe that would have been better,” she told herself out loud. She still felt numb, but at least she was now aware of herself and her situation, something she was not able to do when she entered the Kibo module.

  Susan floated with her eyes closed, in a fetal position, trying not to think about anything. She listened for the rustle of leaves from the tomato tree or anything else that might allow her to steer her thoughts away from reality. Her body quivered now and then as the last sobs left her. She could feel the cloud of sleep descending upon her and she relaxed. Sleep would protect her, hide her and isolate her from the terrors that lay outside of the cocoon she was constructing. It felt so good and she gave in and let it consume her.

  As she was placing the final gossamer layer on her cocoon, the whirring noise emanating from a circulating pump that she was focusing on stopped. A computer controlling the experiments in the module shut the pump off, obediently following its programming. In an instant Susan’s cocoon evaporated. She found herself wide-awake and face-to-face with the reality she so desperately wanted to avoid.

  Susan looked accusingly about the room for the source of the absent noise, debating if she would be able to return to her state of suspension, if she could restart it. Giving up, she finally resigned herself to the fact that she would not be able to escape reality now, and she had things that needed to be done.

  Wiping her face with the towel she still clutched in her hand, she floated over to the computer display to check the time. She did not know exactly what time she entered the module, but it looked like she had been alone for less than a half hour.

  Susan toyed with the display, scrolling the mouse around the screen, pressing buttons, but not really paying attention to what she was doing. Trying to snap out of her depression, she forced herself to pull up the station’s status display.

  Line-by-line, she read aloud the information given to her. Everything was nominal; the station was doing what it was supposed to do. Or Ivan had fixed it, she thought to herself.

  Feeling a little bit more in control, she selected another screen that showed a plot of the station’s location over the Earth’s surface. The display showed the station as being over Spain, which correlated with her estimate to how much time she had spent in Kibo.

  She vaguely remembered that they were again passing over the band of debris that had been thrown up by the impacts, but was still too numb to be concerned with it at this moment. A flashing icon on the bottom of the display, a remnant of her mindless wandering on the computer, caught her eye and reflexively she selected it.

  The screen switched to a formal looking document titled: Kibo MANIFEST.

  Glancing through the document, Susan realized that it was a list of items that were brought up to Kibo on the previous shuttle mission. She was about to clear the screen, when she glimpsed the heading: AEROPONICS SUPPLIES.

  Staring at the title for a few moments, Susan shook her head trying to clear her confusion. The word was vaguely familiar, but she could not place it. She knew she had seen or heard it before, but could not associate a meaning with it.

  Still uncertain what the list related to, she scanned down through the inventory. As she did the word, “hydroponics” suddenly popped into her mind.

  Susan then recalled one of the seminars she attended while in training for her mission. They were discussing food production for long-term missions in space. Specifically, a manned mission to Mars was the topic for this seminar.

  At that seminar, she heard that aeroponics was a better alternative to the more traditional idea of hydroponics. She remembered how aeroponics was promoted to use fewer resources and place less of a burden on the ship’s environmental systems than the hydroponics systems. It came back to her that she was quite interested in the idea of growing crops in just an air-mist environment, without soil or a large waterbed.

  She and Ivan had a long discussion afterward about the new technology. Remembering that discussion, she was surprised the wor
d did not register with her immediately. Returning to the list, she noted that it seemed to be quite extensive, although she did not understand a lot of the acronyms that were used for most of the entries.

  From what she could gather, the Japanese researchers had sent up all the hardware needed to hold and nurture a large selection of plants. They also sent up seeds from every sort of edible plant one might want to grow. It’s like they were going to feed an army up here, Susan thought.

  Susan was quite intrigued and went through the list twice, trying to understand and decipher what each item was by its coded name. Curiosity getting the better part of her, not to mention that this was providing a most welcome distraction, she exited the manifest screen and had the computer conduct a document search within the Kibo system on aeroponics. She was pleased to see three titles pop up on the display: AEROPONICS EQUIPMENT SETUP, AEROPONICS EXPERIMENTATION PROCEDURES, and AEROPONICS OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE.

  Selecting each one in turn, Susan scanned through them to familiarize herself with their contents. She was quite impressed with the level of detail in the documentation, which would allow almost anyone to conduct the experiments. She glanced through the extensive drawings, schematics and pictures and began to realize that this was a major project, not just a single wall rack experiment like the tomato bush.

  Puzzled, she looked around the module, but saw no evidence of the plants and equipment or even the cargo boxes they would have been shipped in. She went back through the setup document for a clue as to where the material would be stored, but found no useful information.

  This was strange. She knew that the cargo had been brought up on Discovery on the previous shuttle launch; she saw the shuttle manifest for that mission when she helping out at the space center before it launched. Still puzzled with this mystery, she pulled up the manifest she was reading in the beginning and searched it for any clues. Scrolling down through the entire document, she finally found what she was looking for.

  The materials were being stored in the MPLM, the Multi-Purpose Logistics Module, for the next crew to unpack and install. The MPLM, otherwise known as Leonardo, was Italy’s contribution to the space station. It acted as a large cargo module that could be loaded on Earth and transported to the station by the shuttle. Susan was not sure where the MPLM was located on the station. She used the computer to find a schematic of the station and to her surprise discovered that the MPLM was adjacent to Kibo on Node 2.

  Satisfied that she had solved the mystery, she closed the windows that she had opened on the display. Staring now at the blank display, she thought about the idea of growing one’s own food here. If it could be done, it would greatly reduce the logistics for any long-term mission, be it in orbit or to Mars. Checking the time, she realized that she had spent another forty-five minutes in her quest.

  She was feeling better than before, still very washed out, but she could now muster the energy to do the job she was supposed to be doing. She knew she could not stay here forever, and the station was approaching the States again, so they should be hearing from NORAD soon. She pushed herself away from the computer and floated over to the little tomato bush to watch it dance once more before she left.

  Susan exited Kibo and stopped by the MPLM. The hatch was closed, but yielded easily to her efforts to open it. Peering inside, she saw that it was crammed full with neatly ordered packages. Without entering, she could see the name Kibo on most of the identification tags. As she was closing the hatch, she heard some noise coming from the US lab module and turned to see Ivan float into the node. She avoided his eyes as she quietly said hello.

  Ivan studied Susan for a moment, trying to assess her condition. As usual, he thought, she is difficult to read.

  “Hi, Susan, how are you doing?” he asked, not quite sure if she would be honest with him. He knew her well enough to know that she would do what she thought was best for the crew, and the tact she would take would mean being strong and silent.

  “I’m fine,” Susan said, as she looked past Ivan into the lab module, as if there was something there of interest.

  Noting Susan’s gaze, Ivan looked over his shoulder just to make sure that there was nothing behind him that he was unaware of. Satisfied that there was nothing there, he turned back to Susan, whose gaze was still focused on something, real or not, behind him. “Yes, I know that you are fine. What I want to know is, how are you feeling? What are you feeling? And, how can I help you?”

  Ivan watched Susan’s face intently, hoping she would relax a bit and let him in. He thought that they had known each other for too long, not to know what is going on inside each other’s heads. Susan’s head dropped; her eyes now studied the hatch beneath them that led to the Japanese module.

  “I’m fine, Ivan. Don’t worry, I have put this in perspective. I have no right to feel sorry for myself. I’m not the only one who has lost loved ones.” Susan fidgeted with the Velcro cover to the large pocket on her pant leg. “I don’t want to dwell on this, it’s over and there is nothing that can be done to undo it. We have to get back to Earth, that is still our priority. Thank you for your concern.”

  She started to move toward the lab module, but Ivan was in her way and was not moving. She stopped as he reached his arms out to her and solidly grabbed her shoulders. Try as she might, she could not avoid looking at Ivan, and eventually her eyes met his. His image blurred as she could feel the tears begin to well up in her eyes. She turned her head as Ivan pulled her close and hugged her tightly.

  Ivan whispered in Susan’s ear. “I am so sorry, Susan. I wish you did not have to feel this pain. I wish I could take it from you.” He could feel her arms squeeze him tightly as she fought to remain in control. Gradually her grip loosened and she pulled back, wiping away the tears that clung to her eyes.

  “Thank you, Ivan. Your thoughts mean a lot to me. I’m sorry that I’m not quite as strong as I would like to be, or think I am…I’ll be okay.” Susan stiffened up as her internal resolve strengthened, and she squeezed Ivan’s hands. “We should be hearing from NORAD anytime now. We should get to the command module.”

  Ivan gently squeezed Susan’s hands in return, as he looked her in the eyes, and said, “Susan, I will be here for you, anytime, for anything, if you need someone.” He smiled warmly and released her hands.

  Susan did not want to let go of the warm touch, but knew she must if she were going to retain her composure, and act as the commander of this crew. She returned Ivan’s smile, “Thank you, for everything, and for being here for me. Thank you,” she said, as she pulled back.

  Ivan moved to allow her access to the lab module. He followed her to the cupola, where she stopped and looked at the planet shrouded in clouds below.

  The cloud cover betrayed no sign of what lay below it on the surface. Susan shuddered as a chill ran up her spine, and she quickly proceeded to the command module.

  XXI

  Almost twenty-four hours after the impacts, the planet still physically reverberated. Seismologists around the world who were tending their equipment could see the evidence of the Earth ringing like a bell. This also had the unfortunate effect of triggering sporadic, localized seismic events around the world, including several volcanic eruptions that would not have otherwise occurred at this time, creating more sources of dust and carbon dioxide to fill the atmosphere.

  The coastal zones that had experienced the devastating tidal waves were now draining. As the water retreated, it pulled millions of tons of loose debris along with it as it flowed back into the ocean. It left behind a landscape of total destruction, littered with thousands of saltwater lakes and ponds where none had existed before. The huge surge of saltwater contaminated many coastal rivers and lakes destroying the freshwater habitat, along with most of the plants and fauna living in and around them. Fresh water wells were also contaminated with saltwater, debris and sewage, making it very difficult for the few survivors to find potable water.

  Meanwhile, the fires still raged throughout the
southern states and into northern Mexico. Most of the ejecta from the impact were thrown in the same general direction that the asteroid was headed because of the shallow angle of reentry. The impact craters, which were miles deep, and the areas of destruction surrounding them, were more teardrop shaped than circular.

  The topography of the southern United States had changed dramatically. Much of Florida was now an island. Apalachee Bay, on the west coast, was no longer a bay, as it is now above sea level from the ejected debris that filled it. Texas will now have an inland sea, as the crater slowly fills with water flowing through deep trenches that were gouged into the Earth’s crust by the impact. West of Austin, toward the Edwards Plateau, there are a new range of hills that were formed out of the debris ejected from the crater.

  The lifeless, desolate terrain that extends for hundreds of miles around each impact sight eventually will return to Mother Earth, in time, but not before humanity has fought a desperate battle to survive.

  Man’s will to survive and intelligence to understand his environment will combine to produce survivors, although, the society that cultured that intelligence may not survive. Survival in most circumstances will mean returning to a more primitive behavior and cultural norm. Civilized behavior, and ultimately civilization itself, may fall victim to Susan’s monster. Survival of the fittest will be the governing law until the Earth recovers enough to allow those left to pursue other interests besides finding food, protection from the elements, and each other.

  Susan felt uncomfortable entering the command module. She was embarrassed at her earlier loss of self-control and her prolonged absence. She did not consider that behavior worthy of a mission commander. Swallowing hard, she pushed herself into the room.

  Warm and caring smiles greeted her from Alexander and Nicholas. No questions, just reassuring smiles. That was fine for Susan, talking was not what she really wanted to do now. Susan’s attention was diverted from Alexander and Nicholas by the sight of Paul coming out of the compartment where Jerry was. He had a worried look on his face, but made a visible effort to relax when he caught Susan’s gaze.