Man's Hope

by Zellmann, William

  Ternayev laughed. "Rocket engine is not like auto engine," he said. "They are very simple in design. I will examine the engines on the booster tank. If any parts are damaged or corroded, we will simply have them machined. You wisely insisted on receiving all the technical drawings. Theoretically, any good machine ship could build us a new booster engine. Energia, or those damned Ukrainians, could sell us new ones."

  Frank frowned. "Should we do that? Would it make the ship safer, or more fuel efficient?"

  Ternayev frowned. "Perhaps. And there are design modifications that would improve it. But, no. It would take too long. You do not have two years to develop modifications, install, and test on old core stage."

  Frank shook his head. "I certainly don't! We have six months to launch if we're going to intercept Carter IV. Okay," he continued, "What about the strap-ons?"

  "Ah! The strap-ons. They are, of course, your first stage. The core stage was designed for strap-ons using the RD-170 rocket engine. Latest version RD-171 is produced in Ukraine, for the Zenit 3 booster.

  "So, this strap on is still produced." Frank said slowly. "Anton, I've been thinking. I did some research on the Internet, and found a comparison of various launch vehicles. Are the strap-ons changeable? I mean, what if instead of using four Zenit strap ons, we used four Proton M's? If we could do that, we could lift a lot more payload. It looks like they have about a third more payload than the Zenit."

  The smaller man grinned. "Ha! Is true. The Proton M is much larger rocket than Zenit. But I do not think it can be used as a strap-on; it uses strap-ons of its own."

  "Well," Frank said doubtfully, "It's probably crazy, anyway, but my actual idea was to get both the Buran and the core stage into space. The tank would be about empty at that time anyway, so its mass should be reduced a lot. But all we're going to have at that comet is what we take there. We're planning to break the water ice down into oxy and hydrogen. It would really be neat to have that big-ass tank to put the oxygen and hydrogen in, and that big-ass booster for zooming around!"

  Ternayev looked delighted. "I have had similar thought, but using smaller Zenit 3, and lifting heavier load, or same load to higher orbit. Remember, Buran maneuvering engines were also orbital insertion engines. The only successful launch required the Buran to do a 66 m/s burn to get into final orbit. I have been considering ways to make that burn unnecessary.

  "What I have been considering is using Zenit 3 as strap-on. This is almost the same as the original strap-on, but is three-stage. First stage is RD-171, second is RD-120, and third is RD-58M in a Blok-DM upper stage, With the added upper stages to supplement the core stage's main engine, there should easily be enough extra boost to lift the Buran into a trans-lunar insertion orbit without use of the maneuvering engine, though I am unsure about also lifting the core stage." He laughed again. "But you wish to turn a 1980's orbiter into a true interplanetary ship, like in science fiction. I will research it, but do not count on it.

  "Also," he continued, "it will be expensive. The four Zenit-3's will probably cost about 60 million U.S. each. He sobered. "There is also the fact that it is unwise to put men into an untested ship, with untested engine combinations."

  Frank nodded. "I know. I've brought it up to David, and the volunteers he's screening for his crew, and they are all willing to sign waivers. As I keep telling people, we're not NASA. Hell, the damned thing might blow up on the pad and kill us all. But if it works . . ."

  "Yes," Ternayev replied. "If it works, it will be a dream."

  ***

  There is a UN treaty declaring a ban on the use of nuclear energy in space. Its stated purpose is to prevent the deployment of nuclear weapons into space, and to protect the people of Earth from the results of an accident. Though it is largely ignored by The U.S. and Russia when militarily convenient, both piously proclaim their support for it at every opportunity, and rigidly enforce the ban on any smaller nation that dares consider the use of a reactor in space. As a result, most civilian spacecraft, even Russian and American ones, use batteries and solar cells instead of nuclear power.

  But all concerned had agreed that a three-year mission could not be adequately supported by solar cells and batteries, especially a mission using constant-drive ion engines, and going out past Mars. Frank's crew of planners had agreed that only a small nuclear reactor could meet their needs. Small reactors are both possible and practical, though not usually available. Both the U.S. and the Soviet Union pursued the idea of a nuclear-powered aircraft in the 1950's and '60's. Both had produced small reactors capable of being carried on a bomber; the insoluble problem that had caused both nations to abandon the projects was the weight of the shielding required to protect the crew.

  Dr. Ternayev refused to discuss how he knew it, but he insisted that the shielding problem was not insoluble aboard a spacecraft. He suggested that lead shielding would be necessary only on the side of the reactor facing the ship, and that a smaller piece of movable lead could be used to shield a crewmember required to service the reactor.

  After much soul-searching, Frank decided to contact the underground organization once led by a Pakistani physicist that was known to be designing nuclear facilities for rogue nations unable to obtain them legitimately.

  Dealing with criminals and fanatics disgusted Frank even more than the bribery in Kazakhstan had. Nevertheless, everyone agreed that the reactor would be necessary, and would be unavailable through "normal" channels.

  Thankfully, nearly all the arrangements were completed by agents on both sides, and Frank did not have to personally deal with someone he considered a renegade and possible terrorist. That didn't make him feel any better, though.

  "They say they will be able to provide what you want. According to them, a ten-megawatt reactor will be quite small, and will require only a few kilos of Uranium-238, which they can also obtain for you. Payment in gold or diamonds will be required," his anonymous contact told him. The price he quoted seemed quite high, but given the circumstances, Frank decided it was probably not unreasonable. He agreed. Then he spent nearly an hour in the shower. But he still felt dirty.

  The security around Alcântara caused some problems, but finally a woman dressed all in black descended from a fishing boat on the shore of the Baia de Säo Marcos. She was met by Anton Ternayev, David Tarrant, and a working party of Brazilians with a large hand cart.

  The woman accompanied them to the engine assembly facility, a fairly small ferrocement building identical to a dozen others. She said, "No name" when David asked her for one, so from then on, he called her "Dr. Noname" to her great amusement. Her accent in English led David to conclude she was eastern European.

  Once the Brazilian working party had left, she opened the medium-sized crate

  The reactor was actually only about two feet square, and roughly cylindrical in shape, but judging by the effort that the Brazilians had expended to lift it, it was quite heavy.

  Ternayev explained that they planned to mount the reactor at the rear of the ship, nestled among the ion engines. They hoped that the ion engines' exhaust would help conceal the nuclear emissions, and at the same time propel the alpha and beta particles away from the ship.

  The woman appeared lost in thought for nearly a minute. "Possibly," she said finally. "Alpha and Beta particles are moving very fast, but there may be a slight effect. Not on the gamma radiation, of course. But the ion engines' exhaust may help conceal the nuclear emissions, or at least confuse radiation detectors. I cannot say for certain." She handed Ternayev a flash drive. "On here are all installation and operating instructions for the reactor. I recommend you not try to fuel the reactor in space. You should fuel it before launch, but not move the fuel into fission position until well away from detection range of existing spacecraft."

  She turned to leave, and then turned around and waved at the metal box that had taken the entire Brazilian working party to move. "The fuel, of course, is in that lead box. The reactor is the very best we could design, and we are
certain it will function correctly. It is a new version of the Advanced Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor, called the 'Energy Multiplier Module.' It uses a composite of silicon carbide cladding, and a beryllium oxide neutron reflector. This permits you to use mostly what is called "nuclear waste" uranium. We support you and your goals. We wish you very good luck." She turned without giving them a chance to reply, and slipped into the night.

  "They recommend putting a hexagon of 6-inch lead shielding about a meter across between the reactor and the ship," Ternayev told Frank and David the next day. "That should be no real problem. One of the engine crew suggested we make the shielding cup-shaped, to protect the ion engines, and that sounds wise, though I am concerned about the added mass. We'll install the reactor in the center of the rear of the ship, surrounded by the ion engines. It's a heat-exchanger design, so the steam spinning the generator turbine won't be irradiated. You'll be able to repair or replace the turbine without irradiating the ship. "

  He laughed. "Once we run it through the heat exchanger, the transfer fluid can just be routed outside the hull, into the absolute zero of space for a few inches to cool before routing back to the reactor. It really is an elegant design. Dr. Noname said they did their best work on it, and support us and our goals."

  Frank shook his head. "Great. We have the support of the terrorist and fanatic community. Just what I wanted to hear. Oh, well. I guess we have what we wanted. But I sure can't feel good about it."

  But getting the ships space worthy was not the only problem. Susan entered Frank's office to retrieve a file, and overheard part of a discussion between Frank and David. They were discussing how to deal with human waste.

  After a moment, Susan stopped, and then interrupted them. "I hadn't thought about . . . that," she said. "I'll bet a three-year mission will have a lot of problems of daily living like that."

  Frank rose and ushered her to a chair before answering. "There are hundreds of problems like that, Susie," he replied. "Take this waste problem. On a short mission, they either carry it home, or vent it to space. But on a long mission, we don't really want to do either."

  "That's right," David put in. "It would be stupid to add storage just to carry shit. I hate to say it, but we're probably just going to have to devise a way to vent it, after removing the water content. We're 90 percent sure we'll be able to get drinking water from the water ice on the comet. That other ten percent bothers me. If we have an emergency, or don't make it to the comet, the ability to process urine and feces into drinking water could save our lives."

  Susan shuddered. "Drinking urine? Ugh! How could you even think of such a thing?"

  Frank frowned. "Oh, it's not an insoluble problem. We can probably do it with a series of filters. The problem is that there are hundreds of problems like this; the kind of thing that nobody thinks of, until it suddenly occurs to someone. As I keep saying, we're not NASA, with hundreds of people studying every aspect of living in space. I'm scared to death that some simple thing no one thought about could kill everyone aboard."

  Susan just sat for a moment, lost in thought. Suddenly she straightened. "Finally!" she said. "We've finally found a way for me to really contribute to this project! Susan Andrews, Vice President in Charge of Simple Problems. If there's one thing I'm good at, it's computer researches. By the end of the day, I'll bet I'll be able to tell you how many filters you need, and what kind."

  Frank grinned. "Great idea! I've really been worried about this. Make up your own title and salary. But one thing," He sobered. "You'll have to be careful about your research. You won't be able to use any classified stuff from NASA or other government agencies. We can't give them evidence to use to prove violations of the technology transfer laws."

  She laughed lightly. "Dear, you just don't understand research. You think everything the government does is classified. But government scientists are like any other scientists. When they learn something, they can't wait to publish it. Government agencies are always being pushed to allow publication in professional journals. And once it's published, it's public. Aside from military stuff, I don't think there's very much NASA stuff that hasn't been published somewhere. It's just a matter of finding it." She grinned. "There's no need to fear! Susan Andrews is here!"

  Frank shook his head. "Thank heaven you don't look like Underdog!" he said, catching her reference to an old cartoon character.

  Susan hurried out to begin her new duties, and Frank sighed in relief. "You know, I do feel much better knowing Susan is on top of it."

  David grinned and nodded. "It's nice to know that if we can manage to get this circus into space, Susan is the one in charge of keeping us alive."

  Three months to launch, and the pace was frantic. If they missed the launch window for this pass of Carter IV, they wouldn't have another chance for six and a half years; and Frank knew he wouldn't be able to hold it together that long. The hull and main engine crews had moved on to OK-2K1, now just 'K1', and formerly the "Ramenskoye" Buran. Frank had decided to work on the incomplete one, reasoning that he would have to strip the third Buran in the process of rebuilding it, so the incompleteness just gave them a head start. Besides, K1 had also been a 'flight' Buran, while the remaining orbiter, 'OK-KS', now simply 'KS', had been the Energia test version.

  Electronics, guidance, and computer techs swarmed K2, the launch ship, installing newly made equipment, testing circuits, and checking software and hardware. Fighting them for room in the cramped airframe were members of Susan's "Habitability Department."

  Dr. Ternayev swore that the maneuvering engines now at the rear of K2 were the most advanced and most powerful ion engines available. The four RD-120 main engines from the core stage were constantly surrounded by rocket techs, as were the four newly received Zenit 3SL strap-ons. A large Brazilian construction crew was putting final touches on the launch tower on the pad outside the massive hangar. It looked spindly and frail when compared to the towers that launched the original Buran, but as Frank was weary of saying, they were not NASA.

  In the unpainted control center, Brazilian techs studied and learned how to use the state-of-the-art tracking and control equipment from the designers who had only just finished assembling it.

  NASA was also busy. Unsuccessful in the smear campaign, they were appealing to the United Nations Space Authority, protesting the launch on safety grounds. In its response, the Brazilian government pointed out that between Alcântara and Africa lay the entire Atlantic Ocean, that their launch site had an excellent safety record, and that their inspectors were continually verifying the safety of pre-launch procedures. They also pointed out that ESA was launching comparable-sized Ariane-5 rockets from Kourou in French Guiana, only a few miles north of Alcântara.

  The American media continued to hint that something nefarious was going on in Brazil, but the hints were vague, and no longer mentioned Frank by name, thanks to his active and tenacious lawyers. At the UN, though, the American Ambassador continually invoked the threat of 'space terrorism', and bemoaned the fact that Brazil was harboring 'a known felon with a grudge against the U.S.'

  However, his Brazilian friends were standing firm, defying the US, and insisting that it provide proof of Frank's 'crimes'. Most of the UN members seemed somewhat bemused, not understanding why the U.S. would attack one of the most successful developing nations in the world. The Brazilian Ambassador took every opportunity to question the motives and methods of the U.S. Several U.S. attempts to push through sanctions against Brazil were rebuffed by humiliating margins.

  As he had expected, the U.S. government moved to seize all of Frank's assets in the U.S., and was very surprised to find that they consisted solely of the small house in Missouri where he had been born, and a small fund for its upkeep. Frank's attorneys promptly filed suit against the Attorney General, Secretary of State, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and heads of the Department of Justice, and NASA by name.

  But their campaign had been having an effect. Frank's investments, totaling mil
lions, had been seized in three countries due to allegations he was involved in terrorism. Two other nations were 'considering' actions, forcing Frank to move his investments yet again. His name was being mentioned more and more often alongside that of Osama Bin Laden, and despite the best efforts of Frank and his attorneys, his name was becoming associated with terrorism all over the world, among those who sole news source was TV or radio.

  Frank's counteroffensive was also having an effect, though. Five countries had refused U.S. requests to seize Frank's assets. Newspapers all over the world were seizing on Frank's news releases. Pictures of K2, with a large picture of planet Earth on its large tail fin, were to be found in every country of the world, along with explanations of Frank's activities, and his refusal to 'bow down to the powerful'. Space experts, interviewed by magazines and newspapers, were forced to agree that a Buran made a lousy missile. A number of them denounced Frank's goal of intercepting the comet as 'science fiction', or 'unrealistic'. However, a significant number of them were enthusiastic proponents, and the pictures coming out of Alcântara only bolstered their enthusiasm.

  Finally, the ship, K2, was ready. Work had shifted to the core stage and strap-ons, and Frank invited most of the upper levels of Brazil's government to Alcântara for the naming and christening of the ship. He paid for plane tickets for dozens of reporters, bloggers and his most vocal supporters, as well as a number of wealthy friends. He chartered a jet to fly shuttle trips to Alcântara from Brasilia, carrying his government guests.

  A reluctant Brazilian military finally yielded, and allowed Frank to open his launch pad for what he called "The biggest party in Brazil since Carnival!"

  The crowd was massive, but massive arrangements had been made. Literally hundreds of cooks, bartenders, and servers had been imported. The control tower was kept busy shuttling planes in and out, and a steady stream of boats flowed from São Luis, across the bay.