Solar Express

by L. E. Modesitt Jr.

  “It is highly unlikely that provisional Comet COFAR is a comet. Its brightness increased as it neared the orbit of Jupiter, but that increase was proportional to solar reflectivity. Most typical first-time comets have a greater increase. The greater proximity to the sun—”

  “It’s not off-gassing, then?” Another stupid question. You knew that already. “The brightness is strictly from greater reflectivity off a white or near-white surface?”

  “The increase in brightness is directly in proportion to the amount of sunlight received. The object shows two differing surfaces, one with an albedo of point nine nine and the other with an albedo of point six five.”

  “Those are both high. What else?”

  “The duration suggests that the differing surfaces have close to the same surface area.”

  “It’s regularly shaped then?”

  “Images suggest a crescent shape.”

  Crescent shaped with differing albedos on different sides? That was definitely odd, but there were potato-shaped and dumbbell-shaped small bodies. Why not a crescent? “Have you reported that to the IAU?”

  “No. That requires your approval.”

  “You have my approval.” In a way, Alayna was sad about that. If the anomaly wasn’t an active comet, even a gassed-out one, it was effectively an asteroid, or a small solar system body, at least for classification purposes, and there were over a half a million of those, and that didn’t count those that were small boulders or the like, as opposed to a mere five thousand or so identified and named comets. The fact that she had discovered a highly reflective asteroid, or one highly reflective on one side, might be worth something on her professional vita, but a comet would have been preferable. She smiled, faintly. If it were an alien spacecraft, on the other hand …

  She shook her head. It couldn’t be. First, it wasn’t radiating heat, and anything carrying a lifeform needing support and sustenance should be, even at a minimal level. Second, it was far too large to be a spacecraft built by any technology of which she was aware—and if it had been the creation of an advanced technology, it wouldn’t have been approaching on a cometary orbit with a velocity strictly consistent with that of a comet. And finally, at that velocity it would have taken more than seventy thousand years to come from any nearby stellar system. Also, she doubted that anyone would build a crescent-shaped vessel.

  Enough daydreaming. She almost snorted. The words in her thoughts could have come from her all too practical father. Her mother had encouraged dreams.

  She leaned toward the console and began to consider how she could adapt her approach to discovering more about the solar photosphere so that it was more productive. You think you can discover something about the photosphere, when nothing new has appeared in almost a century, only refinements on what was already known? She pushed that thought away. There were always new discoveries, and someone had to make them.

  By midafternoon, UTC, Alayna was less than half-occupied, although there was enough going on with the optical array and the radio telescope that she needed to stay close to the control center. She just wished that Chris had messaged. Although she had always waited for Chris to reply before she messaged him again, she hadn’t heard from him in over two weeks.

  Is he all right? Or is he tired of a remote and not-very-interesting junior astronomer? She shook her head. The hell with waiting. If he wasn’t interested in continuing the relationship, such as it was, she might as well find out sooner rather than later.

  An hour later, she began to read over what she had written.

  Chris—

  Here’s hoping that everything’s going well with you. Since you’ve avoided details about your new duties, I can’t very well comment. Even if I knew, commenting on another’s specialized work isn’t the best idea. Everyone has simplistic views. They certainly do about astronomy. Some people still think we peer through a little eyepiece to look at the stars. Our array here doesn’t even have an eyepiece. The light sensors are far more sensitive than the human eye, and we can filter out any wavelength we want.

  I don’t think I mentioned it before, but several months ago I observed a new comet—well, COFAR did, and I reported it to the International Astronomical Union. The IAU named it as a provisional comet—Comet COFAR—with my name attached as the reporting astronomer, since COFAR actually did the discovering and comets are named after the discoverer. It’s not behaving like a comet should, and the reflected spectrum suggests that its surface is white and predominantly silver and silicate. Most comets are icy and dark dustballs. I’m getting the feeling that my comet is either so ancient that it’s stopped off-gassing when it nears the sun or not a comet at all and some sort of misfit asteroid that must have been kicked into a strange orbit a long time ago. Since there are more than a half million asteroids, officially small solar system bodies, in the solar system, there goes my chance at notice—even if it would have been only for a short time.

  That means I need to shift my approach to figure out a better way of observing and analyzing the mini-granulations. I just hope I haven’t wasted too much time. I’m also worried about the fact that the sun is in a solar minimum, and that might affect the mechanisms impacting mini-granulations.

  Two years seems like forever, but I’ve already been at Daedalus Base for six months, and all I’ve managed is to confirm and perhaps refine slightly what others have already done. Professor Janes would have just admonished me that I didn’t waste time and that I just learned another approach that wasn’t the best way.

  She frowned for a moment, then smiled, if ironically. Chris would take that the right way, and if he didn’t …

  Apparently, however I handled the Noram IG team was acceptable. There’s been no comment from the Foundation, and I’m certain there would have been if they’d found some glaring error. According to the news, the Noram Senate is battling over the appropriations for DOEA. Even with the threat of greater Sinese control over the outer solar system, they’ve cut tax subsidies for the lunar mining outfits, but not for research institutions. So far, anyway.

  I hope all is well with you.

  She continued to reread the message. When she finished, she sent it, then asked Marcel, “Are all systems good?”

  “All systems are functioning at expected efficiencies, Dr. Wong-Grant.”

  “Thank you.”

  She turned to the console and called up her project. She really did need to get to work on a better approach to her research, and she had a day or two before she absolutely had to message her father … or Emma.

  17

  DONOVAN BASE

  15 SEPTEMBER 2114

  The colonel looked across the six officers seated in the sealed and ultra-secure briefing room. Of the two majors and four senior captains, one major and two captains were women. Tavoian thought the colonel’s eyes lingered on him for a moment, but that was probably his own imagination. From what the others had said, all of them respected the senior officer, and not a one believed that he had any favorites … and no one wanted to be a favorite. Not when the colonel might expect even more from that officer.

  “You’re getting an oral briefing because what you are about to hear has not been committed to any database you can access … and will not be. You are not to write down what I’m about to tell you. You are not to discuss it with anyone once you leave this chamber. Even among yourselves. You all know why.”

  To Tavoian, that was obvious. Nanotechnology had reached the point where nowhere was secure, except for places and spaces where enormous and continuous effort was required to keep them cleared.

  “If you have been following the media in any form, you all know, or should know, that tensions between the Sinese Federation and the India-UAAS coalition have been continuing to rise. Despite the efforts of the Noram government, it is likely that if matters escalate, Noram will be drawn into the possible conflict, if only indirectly. Space Command has learned of two developments that will impact Donovan Base … and you. The first is t
hat the Indian Defense Ministry, under the guise of gravitational research, has been constructing a large installation at L5 for some unknown period of time. That installation is an adaptation of a largely nickel-iron asteroid. It is shielded with nonreflective and energy-absorbent dark-body. Space Command has reason to believe that the asteroid was either undiscovered and shielded years ago and/or nudged into that position. It is roughly a third smaller in diameter than the largest asteroid in L4. The structure and composition of the asteroid lend themselves to a highly defensible installation.” The colonel looked toward Nilsenn, the most junior captain. “You look skeptical, Captain.”

  “The largest asteroid in L4 is roughly three hundred meters in diameter, sir. It was discovered over a century ago. Even if this L5 body is only two hundred meters in diameter, that’s a huge amount of iron … and mass. Maybe twenty million tons’ worth. If anyone moved it, sir, if they even could, sir, the energy signature … Either way, sir, how did it escape notice?”

  “I am not an astrophysicist or an astronomer, but I understand that the asteroid in question was an Apollo asteroid in an inferior position, which makes it more difficult to observe, and that it took several years of use of a fusion drive timed so as not to be easily observable in orbit to stabilize its orbit in an L5 position. Since there are over five thousand Apollo asteroids, one might forgive astronomers for not noticing the gradual repositioning of one of the smaller members of that group. It is also believed that work on shielding and reconfiguring the asteroid began over five years ago. It has a code name of Shiva…”

  Tavoian managed to keep his face calm. A solid nickel-iron asteroid two hundred meters in diameter held enough iron to build almost anything. If partially hollowed out, and left with an outside shell of three or four meters, if reinforced correctly, it would probably be impervious to any weapon in any human arsenal, certainly any weapon currently in orbit or space, and at the L5 distance from Earth even a laser powered by a fusion plant wouldn’t do anything except maybe offer a glimmer of illumination.

  “You look amused, Captain Tavoian.”

  “No, sir. I was thinking that it sounds more like a combined fortress and manufacturing facility, but I can’t see it being that much of a danger there. There is also the question of militarizing space…”

  “I will not address the militarization issue, except to say that, sooner or later, human beings have militarized everything, and usually the last one to do so has suffered. As for the Indian installation, its remoteness is exactly what the Sinese fear … especially if India completes its space elevator. More precisely, if India successfully converts its partial space elevator to a full ocean-level elevator.”

  “Sir…” offered Major Wilkens, “wouldn’t the distance from L5 preclude any ease of attack? I mean…”

  “At nearly a hundred and fifty million kays, it would indeed. But as a near impervious manufacturing facility possibly powered by several fusion reactors, it offers a unique stand-off capability. Also, it’s likely that the Indians moved it once. The more iron they use or remove…” The colonel smiled. “It would take power and time, of course.” After the briefest of pauses, he went on. “The second factor is that the Sinese have their own initiative. It includes a large ship now approaching Jupiter with a magnetic targeted fusion drive. You might ask why MTF. It can be operated continuously at lower power, or at least with fewer breaks. It is more powerful than a vasimr drive, and more durable than a direct fusionjet, and it is designed for either deuterium-deuterium fusion or deuterium-tritium. It appears likely that there is a higher incidence of deuterium in the ice of Europa…”

  “Sir? Was that discovered by the Sinese robotic mission to Jupiter?” asked Captain Dekins.

  “That’s the presumption. The Sinese reported the mission as failed and lost, but not until sometime after it should have reached Europa.”

  Tavoian got the picture immediately. The Space Service was concerned about the possible depletion of Hel3 sources on Luna. But the Sinese wouldn’t have invested in sending a manned ship, especially one that large, if they didn’t have a good idea of what to expect … and if they cornered a ready source of deuterium in the icy surface or in the accessible depths of Europa …

  “… the Sinese ship is some three hundred plus meters in length. It also contains expandable living quarters that can be rotated for artificial gravity. That suggests a crew of more than a few individuals and that the Sinese have plans for an extended stay in the Jovian environs. There are indications that it also carries a secondary fusion power plant. You can draw your own conclusions.” The colonel’s smile was wintry.

  None of the officers being briefed ventured such conclusions.

  “For these reasons, shortly all of you will begin operations designed to result in providing Space Command with more data and information on both Sinese and Indian installations and operations.”

  More? Given what the colonel had just said and the views he had shown Tavoian in his initial briefing, how much more data/information was necessary? And what could fusionjet pilots add that unmanned recon probes couldn’t do more easily and surreptitiously? Tavoian managed to keep his expression pleasant as a second thought struck him. Senior commanders never believe they have enough information. Still … he had his doubts.

  By the time the briefing was over, Tavoian had less than an hour before he had duty, but he felt that he really did need to reply to Alayna’s latest message. He’d felt that way for days, and the last thing he wanted to do was to push away someone he felt he could actually talk to—or message—as the case might be. He also knew that if he didn’t take the opportunity when he had a few moments, something else would come up. It always did. Besides which, the mention of her comet/asteroid was intriguing.

  He immediately made his way to his quarters, small as they were, and began to compose his reply, as quickly as he could, but with a certain care.

  Alayna—

  I owe you an apology for my lack of consideration in not replying sooner, and I appreciate your thoughtfulness in messaging me again. The training here is long, often tedious, and very exacting. I suppose that applies to anything of a highly specialized and technical nature, perhaps even more to what you do than to me … but it is tiring.

  I have to say that while it may strike you as almost prosaic, and disappointing, to have discovered a new asteroid, instead of a comet, I happen to think that either one is exciting. You may think that is strange coming from a pilot, but people think of us as “seeing” asteroids and planets. We seldom see anything but planets or moons, and those almost always on screens when we’re approaching an orbit installation around them, and only in passing. You probably have already seen far more different images of planets, moons, comets, and asteroids than I ever will.

  I’m not an astronomer or an astrophysicist. I’ve probably said that more than once. From my limited knowledge, I thought that a silver-silicate body of any sort would be rather rare, especially if it initially appeared on a cometary orbit. If it is, wouldn’t that sort of rarity help in furthering your career? If I’m mistaken about that, my condolences. It would seem so unfair that a discovery wouldn’t provide some benefit. Or is it that there are so few opportunities in your field that only discoveries considered major or important will advance you in the profession?

  Somehow that reminds me of the following:

  Quantum AI technology allows people to juggle figures and situations beyond their understanding to arrive at results beyond their comprehension. That leads to mistakes beyond their ability to correct, at which point they blame the system or the AI. When scientists attempt to point out that it is a bad idea to blame the tool, rather than the user, both business and government cut their funding for everything else.

  I’m certain you know where I found that. I suspect the point also applies to those who review the funding for what astronomers and astrophysicists do, especially in these times. You hinted several months ago that those who fund pure research have very d
ifferent priorities from those who conduct it. That’s true in more than science.

  I’d like to say more, but I’m sending this immediately because I have another meeting scheduled, and I don’t know when I’ll have another chance.

  That wasn’t true. Tavoian had to report to the operations center as duty officer, but saying that might have triggered the censoring system, and he didn’t want to have his belated reply delayed further. Especially when he tended to overfocus on what was happening at Donovan Base.

  He sent the message, then rose and headed for the ops center.

  18

  THE TIMES OF ISRAEL

  3 OCTOBER 2114

  TAKING THE WRONG ELEVATOR

  (SHIRAZ) Back off trying to stop India’s completion of a full space elevator! It wasn’t that direct, but that was the message sent to Sinese Head of State Jiang Qining in a joint communique signed by Iranian President Saam Achmed Narsi, Israeli Prime Minister Merav Meir, and Nigerian First Minister Ngozi Darego. The three acted on behalf of the Unity of African and Allied States, following consultations last week in Johannesburg.

  Meir noted that almost half the world’s population has no easy access to space, and that the Dyaus space elevator would serve not only India but all the nations of the UAAS under the Memorandum of Understanding between India and the UAAS. “For a power that has always opposed colonialism, the Sinobloc stance of opposing access to space for those victimized most by colonialism reeks of hypocrisy.”

  Both Darego and Narsi agreed that the current monopoly on access to the threshold of space—geostationary orbit—by either Noram or the Sinese Federation—places great constraints on the rest of the world …

  Predictably, Noram President Yates praised the “spirit of cooperation” behind the Memorandum of Understanding …