Stellarium (Origins): A Space-Time Adventure to the Ends of our Universe

by Fabricio Simoes

  On the camera, they could see how quickly they were moving toward the module. There wasn’t much they could do. They stared at the monitor as they got closer and closer. In the final seconds, it was clear that they were going to collide. “Prepare for collision,” the commander yelled. They all grabbed on and closed their eyes, expecting the worst.

  But nothing happened. They opened their eyes to see that the module had jumped. There was no collision. If it hadn’t jumped, it’s likely that neither the module nor the Orion-II would have made it out in one piece.

  “That was a close one. Allison, can you check how fast we’re going?” Russell asked, relieved.

  The computer was calculating their speed using the most up-to-date information from the telescope. The astronomer didn’t have an answer yet. Frank was still in shock, trying to process the fact that they had almost died in an extremely stupid way, finally so close to home.

  “We’re moving away from Earth, but at a speed of less than 60 miles per hour!”

  “That’s great! And we’re still at 4% fuel, which I think is enough to get us to the Space Station (ISS),” the commander exclaimed.

  “Now, we just have to contact NASA. We won’t be able to get there without their guidance, especially given our low fuel level,” Frank said.

  Chapter 17

  “Houston, this is Commander Scott Russell, Orion-II. Do you copy?”

  Once again, there was nothing but discouraging silence, which they were starting to get used to.

  “Houston, we’ve had a lot of problems on this mission, but we’ve managed to return from the Draco Galaxy. We were moving away from Earth, but we managed to stop the ship by getting rid of the Accelerator Module and creating a mini black hole. We are approximately three times the distance between the Earth and the moon away, floating in space. Fuel at 4%, oxygen at 43%. We can’t hear anything. DO YOU COPY?” Russell shouted desperately at the end of his message.

  Just as with all of his previous attempts, there was no response. It had been eight hours, and the crew’s situation hadn’t changed much.

  That’s when, in a moment of enlightenment, Frank made a relatively simple suggestion:

  “Russell, NASA was expecting us to be back five days after the jump. But, according to what Allison said, more than a year may have gone by here on Earth. Maybe they disabled the frequency that we used for the Stellarium program.”

  “You’re right, Frank. Let’s try a different one. One of these manuals has the frequency of the Space Station. I’m sure it hasn’t changed,” said Russell.

  They all started to flip through the manuals. Allison found the frequency they were looking for, and Frank quickly made the adjustment on the communicator. Their goal was to establish contact on the same radio frequency that the ISS used to communicate with Earth.

  “ISS, or Houston, this is Commander Scott Russell, Orion-II. Do you copy?”

  They all sat in silence, concentrating solely on the buzzing sound coming from the communicator, as they anxiously awaited any type of response. Then, suddenly:

  “ISS, this is Houston. Please repeat.”

  “Houston, this is astronaut John Miller, ISS. We got the message as well. It didn’t come from the ISS. I confirm that it did not come from the ISS.”

  The ship is overcome with joy. Both Houston and the ISS had responded, despite the fact that they both thought they were communicating with each other.

  That’s when Russell sent out another message:

  “Houston, ISS, it’s great to hear you both! This is Commander Scott Russell, Orion-II. Do you copy?”

  Once again, silence. This time, it lasted for more than two minutes. Russell made another attempt at communicating. Then, a message came through…

  “This is Walter Smith, Flight Control Director at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. You are using a restricted frequency. Please stop transmitting. I repeat, stop transmitting. This is a restricted NASA frequency; by interfering with it, you are breaking federal law.”

  “Houston, this is Commander Russell. I’m transmitting from the Orion-II. We tried to transmit via the Stellarium frequency, but we didn’t get a response. That’s why we are using the ISS frequency.”

  At that point, a young controller called Smith over to his monitor.

  “Well, we were able to trace the transmission. This communication isn’t coming from Earth.”

  “That’s not possible. Which satellite is it being retransmitted from?” the director asked.

  “It isn’t. This signal is coming from open space. It’s not coming from the ISS either, because the station is on the other side of Earth right now; if it were coming from there, we would be receiving the transmission from at least two satellites. So, this isn’t a hacker... unless he’s in space.”

  The director was silent for a few moments. “It can’t really be the Orion-II,” he thought. “It can’t be Stellarium-12,” he repeated out loud, audible to those around him.

  “Can you wake Dr. Jones up? He’s the one who headed flight control for the Stellarium mission…” Smith asked.

  After giving the order, Smith asked his team to activate radio communications with the Stellarium Space Program. If the message had really come from the Orion-II, the crew would be able to communicate via that frequency, thus eliminating the possibility of fraud once and for all.

  Everyone at the control center was in shock, in silence. They didn't know what to do. Few of them had any detailed information on the Stellarium program. They knew what it was about, but they didn’t understand the magnitude of what was happening. First of all, the Stellarium program had ended. As far as they knew, the crew onboard the Orion-II was dead. It could just be a simple prank... but what if it was real?

  “Meanwhile, let me talk to them,” said the director as he put on his headphones.

  Chapter 18

  Aboard the Orion-II, the three astronauts still hadn’t heard back from NASA. They wondered what was going on. They had expected everyone to be happy to know that they were back. But, instead, their moment of contact had been a complete failure. The people in Houston didn’t even seem surprised; on the contrary, the crew had been treated with hostility.

  Then, they received a response.

  “Orion-II, this is Houston. My name is Walter Smith, and I'm the current Flight Control Director at the Space Center. Please confirm receipt of this message.”

  “Houston, this is Orion-II. Commander Russell speaking. We’re hearing you loud and clear. Is Dr. Jones no longer in charge of Stellarium?”

  “Orion-II, go back to the default frequency for the Stellarium mission. Let’s use that to communicate so we can get off of the ISS frequency,” the director requested.

  Frank immediately changed the transmission frequency back to the one originally designated for the mission. Back in Houston, the controllers did the same. A few minutes later, the first transmission went out.

  “Houston, this is Orion-II transmitting via the default frequency. Do you copy?”

  “Orion-II, this is Houston. We’ve received your message.”

  “Jones? Is that you?” Allison asked.

  Terry Jones, or Dr. Jones to some, was the head of flight control for the Stellarium program. He had worked at the program with Allison for ten years, and had been in charge of all of the probe missions, as well as the Stellarium-12 mission, which had sent the Orion-II into space.

  “Allison? Is that really you?” Jones asked.

  “Yes! You have no idea how nice it is to hear your voice!” she responded.

  Everyone is the room fell silent. Few could believe what was happening. Even Jones didn’t know if the transmission was real, or just part of a joke.

  “Dr. Jones, the Orion-II was equipped with cameras, right? Can we see them?” Smith asked.

  “Yes. Controller, can we see images of the astronauts aboard the Orion-II?” Jones asked.

  “Yes, sir. Initiating transmission.”

  A few moments later, they
started receiving the images. They were able to see a sharp video of the three astronauts. Jones grabbed on to keep himself from falling when his legs started to tremble. Someone immediately came to support him and sit him down in a chair.

  “Houston, the mission was partially successful,” Russell began. “We jumped to the Draco Galaxy, but we encountered a few problems. We were able to get the probe into Sater’s orbit, and we received lots of images before losing contact. After that, we went through a number of ordeals, but we managed to get back.”

  “Commander Russell, everyone here thought that you all were dead,” Jones responded.

  “Yes, we figured as much. We had to orbit part of a singularity, a huge black hole, which caused us to travel at close to the speed of light; that, in turn, distorted space-time for us. That’s why we’re heading back one year later on Earth, but just a few days late by our clock,” the commander confirmed.

  “One year?” Jones exclaimed, looking at Smith with sadness and dread written all over his face. “Russell, Allison, Frank... the Stellarium Space Program was cancelled five years after you all began the mission. You departed in 2036; it’s now 2051. It's been 15 years...”

  On the ship, the three astronauts look at each other, frightened. Allison is surprised, as well. She reminds Frank and Russell that they were close to that huge black hole for a long time. That singularity had deformed space-time in such a way that, even if they hadn’t been moving, time would have passed differently for them.

  “15 years? Did you say ‘15 years’?” Russell repeated incredulously, looking at Allison.

  Although she hadn’t said anything at the time, she had imagined that they might get back up to five years after their departure, or maybe a bit more, but not fifteen.

  From Earth, everyone at the control center observed the faces of the astronauts inside the capsule, who were trying to understand what was going on. They were interrupted by Dr. Jones.

  “Orion-II, I know this might sound crazy. I’m still trying to believe it’s true. I can only imagine what you all must be thinking. Right now, we have to focus on getting you home. We’re going to do a full scan of the state of the ship and measure all the parameters. Then, we’ll have to map out a return plan. I need to confirm your position and fuel level. Then, I’ll need to make a few calls before you all complete your reentry,” Jones explained.

  “Houston, we’re missing one of our parachutes. It was damaged during the mission. We can’t reenter aboard the Orion-II. We only have 4% fuel left, which we think should be enough to get to the ISS,” Russell said.

  “What is your position?” Jones asked.

  “We are approximately three times the distance between the Earth and the moon away. Allison will send the coordinates. We’re moving at a low speed away from Earth,” the commander responded.

  Frank was quiet. He had his face in his hands, and couldn’t believe the situation. He had said goodbye to his children, telling them that he’d be back in two weeks. It had been 15 years; he had missed out on the best part of their lives. And imagine how much they must have suffered, thinking that their father was dead. He suddenly began punching the dashboard, yelling, “No! No! No!” He only stopped once Allison came to comfort him, at which point he let his tears flow; they mixed with the blood on his face, spread there by his injured hands.

  A few moments later, after watching everything going on inside the ship, Jones picked up the transmission again:

  “Don’t worry, we’re going to get you back. Everything’s going to be okay. Right now, you just have to stay calm.”

  Dr. Jones ended the call. He looked at the other controllers. A calm gaze behind an experienced veneer. His white hair, or what was left of it, was still a mess after having been woken up early. He looked at the monitor once more, which displayed real-time images of the crew. Then, he looked at Smith, nodded his head, looked back at the monitor, and, finally, feeling rather speechless, exclaimed: “What a crazy situation…”

  Image 14 – NASA control center in Houston.

  (credits and details on the final page)

  Chapter 19

  The pressroom at the Johnson Space Center was packed. The reappearance of the Orion-II crew had leaked, creating a social media frenzy. Suddenly, it was the only thing the world was talking about. Specialists were invited to share their opinion on the rumors, and TV audiences were as large as those for events such as the Super Bowl.

  But NASA was quick to react. On the second day of rumors, they called a press conference. The NASA Administrator herself, Dr. Elizabeth Lark, who held the highest position in the institution, took on the task of giving explanations.

  The press conference began. Live streaming from Houston. Elizabeth began her announcement:

  On December 1st, 2036, approximately 15 years ago, NASA launched the most ambitious mission in the history of the organization. In terms of risks, the Stellarium Space program—and, particularly, the Stellarium-12 mission—was riskier than the 1969 moon landing, and even the 2030 exploration of Mars.

  The mission used a revolutionary technology capable of creating a gravitational surge and, thus, opening a wormhole that would make it possible to jump through space. With this technology, trips that would normally take millions of years could be completed in a matter of seconds. However, this technology depended on the topology of the universe in dimensions that we weren’t familiar with. There was no way to control where you wanted to go, but there was a way to know where to jump from in order to get to a certain place. These ‘jump points’ were discovered through several probe studies, until, one day, the NASA administrator before me, along with the President of the United States, decided that we knew enough about these risks to send the first crew.

  And, so, the Orion-II took off, 15 years ago, for a mission that was supposed to last 15 days. Onboard was an exceptional team of three astronauts: Commander Scott Russell, Doctor in Astronomy Allison Scheffer, and Doctor in Engineering Frank Wood.

  The ship never returned. Five years later, in 2041, all operations falling within the Stellarium Space Program, including probes, were definitely retired. NASA once again turned its attention to exploring Mars.

  That decision, which, at the time, seemed to be the most appropriate, and which was aimed at not putting any other astronauts’ lives at risk, has now proven to have been a mistake.

  Exactly three days ago, on November 17th, 2051, the Orion-II returned and reestablished contact. The three astronauts are alive and well!

  In that moment, the room filled with noise. Journalists began to throw out questions, all at the same time. Elizabeth asked them to wait until the end of her announcement. As soon as they quieted down, she continued.

  Her speech lasted more than 30 minutes. Elizabeth explained everything that had happened on the mission. She talked about the crew’s arrival in Draco, the asteroids, and the black hole, giving a detailed summary of everything that they had been through.

  “We have more information, but, at this time, I’d like to take some questions.”

  The reporters began to fight for the first question. Elizabeth, however, pointed to a young journalist from CNN.

  “Mrs. Lark, Chris Allen with CNN. I have two questions. The first is: is there proof of the astronauts’ entire experience, including the places they visited? And the second question is: when are they going to begin their reentry?”

  “Yes, the entire duration of the mission, 20 days for them, was recorded by the five external cameras on the Orion-II. Everything captured by the ship’s telescope was also recorded, as well as all the data from the ship’s sensors. The ship also received an immense amount of information from the probe that orbited the planet Sater. We even have records of everything they did aboard the Orion-II. It’s important to stress that they accomplished the mission,” Elizabeth responded.

  “And, with regards to your second question, we are still planning their safe return to Earth. The asteroid that hit them damaged their parachute system
. They won’t be able to use the Orion-II to reenter. So, we’ve evaluated all of the possible alternatives and we have a plan in place. I can’t give you any details about that yet, but I hope to be able to provide more information in another day or two,” the NASA Administrator concluded.

  “Mrs. Lark, Jane Williams here with Fox News. Is there a chance of the Orion-II not returning, of losing the crew and all of the information collected during the mission?”

  “Yes and no,” she replied. “I need to be very clear with you all right now. The Orion-II will not be able to reenter without its parachute system. Furthermore, the ship does not have enough fuel to get to the International Space Station. Therefore, we have another plan in place. This plan has risks, but we are confident that we will be able to rescue them and bring them home. And with regards to the data on the Orion-II, NASA started downloading it all three days ago. There is a lot of data which suffered extreme interference due to solar radiation, so it’s a slow process, but we believe that, in two or three more days, we’ll have all of the data on the Orion-II here in Houston,” Elizabeth responded.

  “Jessica Almeida, Globo News, Brazil. Mrs. Lark, although astronaut Allison Scheffer is an American citizen, she was born in Brazil. Has NASA officially contacted the Brazilian government yet?”

  “I spoke with the United States ambassador to Brazil by phone yesterday. Allison, as you said, is American. The fact that she has double citizenship does not imply any special relationship, connection or obligation between NASA and any other country. Nonetheless, we will keep the Brazilian government informed regarding the rescue mission. We know that there has been quite a lot of commotion in Brazil, and we won’t ignore that,” said Elizabeth.