She was also the go-to person for counseling needs and anything to do with their living conditions. Born in London England, Beth held a medical degree and a doctorate in Clinical Psychology. After graduating from St. George's University in London, she moved to the United States where she earned her Ph.D. in Psychology at New York University and had been the best pick for the Lunar Habitat Economics Specialist position, followed closely by a medical doctor from Alabama, who was her six-month cross-over exchange person. She leaned back against a chair and contemplated Jet.
"How is the mining process coming along?"
Jet hauled his dinner out of the freezer and turned to open the microwave door.
"So far, so good!"
Beth put her hand on his arm, "Are you okay, Jet? Is something bothering you?"
"No, why do you ask?"
"Are you thinking about...her?"
Beth was very perceptive, knowing from previous conversations that Jet had lost his fiancé just before the wedding. Perceiving that the proverbial nail was being further driven into his already fragile state of mind, Jet responded with a trace of annoyance.
"I think about her most of the time! I didn't know it was a crime."
Beth understood perfectly where Jet was coming from.
"You know I'm just concerned for your state of mind, Jet. It's certainly not a crime to remember a departed loved one, but we need to guard against depression, especially out here in this environment!"
Secretly, Jet really liked Beth. She was understanding and always sympathetic, ready to listen to all the astronauts' problems. Her neat figure was pleasant to the eye. Long blond hair spilled lavishly onto her shoulders and the misty-blue, smiling eyes were always warm, radiating her caring nature. He wondered what her story really was. Was she running from some failed relationship? Trying to mend a broken heart, like he was? If so, she certainly didn't show it!
Jet grimaced and ventured, "Yes, you are absolutely right. I have to move on with my life, but only when I'm good and ready."
"You need a good workout in the gym. It will help you take your mind off things. Finish your dinner and I'll meet you there in twenty minutes!" Beth responded positively.
"You're on," said Jet, thankful for the company.
∞∞
Chapter Nine
Danger at the Solar Array
Sunday, July 12, 2026
0500 hours
The alarm went off, startling Jet out of a deep slumber. The dream evaporated, leaving his semi-conscious mind to struggle with the dawning reality of a new day. At least, that is what the human mind tries to clarify under lunar circumstances.
The real moon day is two weeks long and so is the night. This means that the astronauts have to live by the atomic clock in the Base Control Room which is synchronized with Earth Mission Control Center in Houston, Texas. All communication to and from the Lunar Base was done according to Eastern Standard Time. The shifts were also worked according to the same time frame. Four of the twelve astronauts on the Lunar Base did not have cross-overs for twenty four hour coverage: Jet, Beth, Base Commander John Miller, and IT Specialist, Lui Wong. They were, however, considered to be on-call during their off-shift period in case of emergencies.
Before discarding his sleeping bag, Jet untied the restraining straps which held the bag and its occupant to the mattress and then pulled himself toward the ablution cubicle.
While asleep under the one-sixth gravity of the moon, bodyweight settles gently to the normal horizontal sleeping position. Turning over or changing position without some form of restraint could cause upward motion with a possible shifting of the body from the bunk onto the floor. Being restrained while sleeping was just one of the many inconveniences that the astronauts had to become accustomed to—which they soon did.
The ablution cubicle contained special cleaning wipes for washing the body and a basin provided fine jets of water for drinking and brushing teeth.
With ablutions completed, Jet put on the LCVG and then donned his work coveralls. He ventured out into the corridor which led to the self-serve.
The evening spent with Beth had been pleasant. They had worked out on the gym equipment and talked about many things, avoiding the topic of Jet's deceased fiancé. He felt an attraction building between them but was reticent to explore any thoughts that might lead to a relationship. Every time his mind went in that direction Christina's lovely face would appear and a feeling of guilt would overwhelm him.
The control room was a hive of activity. The robotic operators were busy with their respective cross-overs, comparing notes and sharing the mining dynamics of the past shift, ensuring that all information was passed on and everything was covered for the new shift. Lieutenant General John Miller, the Base Commander, busied himself with the two Operations Managers, Colonel Evgeni Alexander Chekov of the Russian Federation, and Colonel Timothy (Timmy) Rose, of the Royal Marines. These three were the only military personnel on the Lunar Base; the rest were all civilian staff.
Jet checked in with the Robotic Operation Specialists responsible for the computer-controlled robotic excavators and conveyor systems. There were two specialists per shift and the four of them were busy with the cross-over procedure. After satisfying himself that all had been running smoothly on the previous shift, he headed for the airlock. After the pre-breathing procedure to help his body adapt to the pure oxygen, Jet donned his spacesuit. The pre-breathing was to eliminate nitrogen in the astronaut's blood and tissue, minimizing the risk of the bends in the lower pressure of the suit. The hot, burning rays of the sun awaited him as he exited the airlock, and headed for the Beast.
It was 1500 hours and Jet had spent most of the shift checking on oxygen recovery in the main regolith processor. Everything seemed to be going well and the main recovery tank was reaching capacity. When the tank was full, the process automatically began converting oxygen gas to liquid which was then transported to the Lunar Base in large portable cylinders. He checked his own oxygen supply and saw that it was down to 25-percent.
Feeling confident that things were under control, Jet moved out of the Recovery Unit, and skipped over to watch the excavators in action. Under the searing rays of the sun the temperature was reaching the upper limit at which his spacesuit could efficiently maintain heat control. The LCVG would keep him comfortable for the time being.
The robotic excavators were working at maximum rate, churning up the moon's regolith. Each excavator worked within a given sector of ground. The excavators operated automatically, watched over by the two on-shift Excavator Operators, who could take control of any excavator remotely if required. Cameras, mounted at the end of each machine gave a 360 degree view of the operation.
The regolith material was scooped up and deposited onto side conveyors at right-angles to the main conveyor. Tons of ground per second from the excavators fed the mobile processing plant, Processor One, where the soil heat-process released the gases for containment. Helium-3 was removed and contained for transport back to Earth while processed oxygen was temporarily stored before being transferred to the Lunar Base for human consumption.
An enormous amount of ground had to be processed in order to extract the Helium-3 fuel. The mining endeavor would need to move millions of tons in order to produce even one ton of Helium-3. An initial figure of 25 tons of Helium-3 per annum was calculated for the USA's consumption alone. Production for the first eighteen months would be used to augment the entire world's consumption which was due to start in 2027.
There were twenty excavators feeding two processors and a full shift of excavating was required to meet the quota set by the mission's statistics and planning officials. Four extra excavators were always on standby to replace any machine that had to be removed for routine maintenance.
Chen Ng, the on-shift Robotic Maintenance Engineer, was busily working on an excavator that had come to a grinding halt. One of the driving wheels had jammed and it was possible that a bearing had collapsed. Chen was having diffi
culty removing the wheel, so Jet moved into position to lend a hand. They chatted on the intercom briefly. The wheel bearing was not coming off without some effort. In space, it is difficult to find and use leverage to remove jammed items, but with two astronauts working together, it was much easier. The wheel-change and bearing replacement took just over two hours, leaving both men hungrily breathing in oxygen and thankful for a rest.
Jet glanced at the HUD's digital figures, rolling off all the details of his life-support systems. The oxygen supply, due to the heavy work, had plummeted to 7- percent, half of what he should have for backup for the return to the Lunar Base, but he comforted himself knowing that the Emergency Backup System contained an extra 10-percent. He figured that 17-percent, approximately one hour's worth of oxygen, should be enough to finish his remaining duties, and still make it back to the Lunar Base. This was a contravention of protocol but sometimes it could not be helped.
Chen indicated that his oxygen supply was running low and it was time for him to head back to Base. The excavator had been reactivated and was greedily gobbling up regolith, spewing it up onto the conveyor.
Jet nodded, waved, and gave assurance over the suit intercom, "Go ahead Chen, I have one or two things left to do." Chen bounded over to his LTV, clambered up into the driving seat and commanded the computer to take him back to Base. With a jerking motion the vehicle lurched forward and began the forty-minute return trip.
On Jet's right-hand side, sparkling radiantly in the sunlight, arrays of solar panels stretched out on the lunar landscape, providing some of the Base energy requirements. Most of the energy requirements were met by the use of a small reactor run on thorium, a radio-active component in lunar material called KREEP, a cleaner substitute for the fallout-prone uranium.
The next cross-over of miners included a fusion expert who was due to start building a small fusion reactor to replace the present fission process. There was plenty of Helium-3 on hand to fuel the future reactor and the present containment of the small fallout problem could be alleviated.
The solar panels were victims of constant micro-meteor bombardment and had to be inspected regularly for damage. It was quite normal to replace a panel or two every month.
Jet skipped over to the first array and started inspecting each panel for damage. The panels were eight feet by four feet and stood about three feet off the ground. Each one fed a large capacitor at the end of an array. This, in turn, supplied the base accumulator with some of its power requirements. For twenty minutes he scrutinized the panels in each row but found nothing damaged. He checked the capacitors and cables. All seemed to be perfectly in order. It was time for him to return to the Lunar Base.
What happened next would go down in the annals of space history. He had been walking between the last two rows of panels when a sudden force hit the left side of his body, pushing him against the panel on the right and caused him to tumble head over heels, floating upward, over the panel. Frantically his mind searched for an answer. Terrified out of his wits, he instantly thought of the possibilities. It must have been a small meteorite hitting the Moon's surface and colliding with a solar panel close to him, instantly destroying it.
Jet felt the impact as he landed up-side-down between the last two arrays of panels. He heard the oxygen alarm going off in his earphones. Two LED's, one red and one yellow, started flashing in the HUD, indicating a low oxygen supply. Fortunately there was no sensation of pain anywhere in his body, and as far as he could tell, he had not been injured. In the quietness of the zero atmosphere he lay in a heap, trying desperately to gain his bearings.
After what seemed an eternity Jet managed to maneuver his body into a sitting position and began checking his life-support system for damage. He noticed it was becoming a little difficult to breathe and quickly concluded that the connection from his oxygen tanks to the suit had been damaged. The HUD indicated that oxygen supply was 1.5-percent.
Jet had been trained to remain calm during stressful situations but he felt an inkling of fear when he activated the Emergency Oxygen Supply. A third red LED began blinking in the HUD. Now he knew he was in trouble. The Emergency Oxygen Supply Module, attached to the bottom of his Primary Life Support System, had been torn away. Jet had been depending on the emergency supply which would have given him another thirty-six minutes of oxygen. It meant only one thing. He had very limited time to prevent a horrible death from suffocation.
∞∞
Chapter Ten
A Close Call
Sunday, July 12, 2026
1610 hours
Jet struggled to keep his composure as he stood up on his feet. He turned to see how far he was from the Mobile Processing plant. There was enough oxygen for at least another three minutes before the main tanks were depleted. The Mobile Processor, some fifty yards away, was definitely going to be a stretch. The Processor main cabin contained breathable air. If Jet could make it to the airlock he could save his life. There was no one close enough to reach him. Even Chen Ng, who had departed thirty minutes earlier, would be too far away to be of assistance.
Switching to the general frequency, he called up the Base Command on his intercom to let them know what had happened. There was an instant reply from John Miller, the Base Commander, "How much oxygen have you got left in the tanks?"
Jet responded, a little breathlessly, "About 1-percent, Commander, plus the small amount in the suit. I am moving toward Processor One on the edge of the solar array."
"Chen is just beyond Jansen Crater" replied Miller, "He has turned back to investigate. I am immediately dispatching Beth and Timmy to your position. They will bring extra oxygen. The auxiliary tank in the Processor cabin may not be enough to get you back to the base. Good luck."
Jet marveled at the Commander's patient handling of the situation. John Miller had every right to be angry at him for allowing the oxygen supply to get so low. It was standard procedure to arrive back at the Base with a minimum of 14-percent oxygen. The emergency supply was only to be used as a last resort but the excavator problem had been a distraction.
"Too late to cry over spilled milk," he murmured into the confines of his helmet assembly and began the slow bounding, skipping movement back toward Processor One. The visual figures, rolling off on the HUD indicated that the oxygen supply was down to 0.5-percent and was quickly being depleted by his lunging, erratic movements toward the gray squat form of the Mobile Processing Plant. The alarm was still sounding in his ears and the LEDs kept blinking, like smoke-agitated eyes, crying dry tears of distress.
Jet's breathing was more labored now. He tried to hold his breath but the effort of movement sucked the oxygen out of his burning lungs, desperately trying to feed the aching, energy-starved muscles. Every second of supreme effort drove him closer to the hatch of the looming Processor.
There was chatter on the intercom, still on the general frequency, but Jet was not listening. The need to manage the failing oxygen supply was his only hope for survival. His total concentration was focused on the quest to reach the Processor before unconsciousness set in. Tiny flashes of light danced before his eyes, and he realized his brain was beginning to shut down, the beginning of the short journey toward a blackout. There was a weakness in his limbs and everything appeared to be in extra slow motion. The stairs to the airlock of Processor One were only twenty feet away but he had nothing more to give. Darkness began to overtake him and he was no longer breathing because there was no oxygen left, even the last remnant in the helmet assembly was gone. All that remained was his breath and the rank smell of fear.
Suddenly, Jet felt a wonderful calmness drifting over him. A presence of peace flowed through his being, heightening his sense of a new consciousness. He saw the beautiful face of Christina smiling at him, but slowly shaking her head from side to side—then, in an instant, it all vanished. Vision began returning and he realized he was sucking in volumes of oxygen, gulping frantically in case the flow ceased again. The alarm had stopped its tyranny and the LE
Ds had extinguished. Sound was returning through the earphones, a buzzing, squelching noise, that appeared to be words. At first they sounded far away but suddenly they grew louder, and then his vision became clearer. Through the visor he could see another visor, and within that visor the eyes of Chen, large as dinner plates, staring at him. Chen's lips were moving, forming words that struggled to establish themselves in Jet's mind, like phantoms performing a pantomime.
"Jet, can you hear me?"
Jet mouthed, "Yes," but did not quite hear the word on his intercom.
Chen leaned down closer to the prone figure, staring for signs of consciousness.
Jet's memory began to return with the realization that he was still alive.
After what seemed an eternity, his mind began to compute again and he spoke in a hoarse voice.
"How in the world did you get here so quickly? I thought you had left for the Base over thirty minutes ago!"
Chen gazed at him with relief and began to explain in his thick Chinese accent. "I was just around the lip of Jansen Crater when the right-hand wheel of the vehicle struck a rock. I hadn't fastened my toolbox down properly and the jolt caused it to be thrown overboard."
Chen helped Jet get unsteadily to his feet and continued: "The latch on the lid has never worked well and several of my tools fell out, scattering in the dust—it took me ten minutes to retrieve everything."
Jet's muscles were weak but strength began slowly ebbing into all his limbs. He stretched to the fullest extent the spacesuit would allow but a feeling of grogginess persisted.
Chen hung on to Jet's arm and added, "It was at the moment I turned around, starting my return to the LTV, that I saw the debris and dust, rising from what appeared to be an explosion at the panel array."
Jet responded, "Miller told me you had turned back but I never thought you would be close enough to make it in time."
The Helium-3 Conspiracy Page 7