A New Eden: A Sci-Fi Thriller Space Adventure (The Betaverse Book 1) by Menilik Henry Dyer

Author:Menilik Henry Dyer [Dyer, Menilik Henry]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Podium Publishing
Published: 2023-07-24T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 24

ATLAS

Under the Ice of New Europa

Atlas sat in his lab, biting his lower lip, trying to come up with a solution for his fungus. He needed a distraction so he called out to Ship. “Ship, where are we at with the mirrors?”

The reply came through the speakers. “Our biggest constraint is finding enough metals in this system. We have kilometers of mirrors pointed at the planet, but it’s just not enough to warm it.”

That was the problem Atlas was struggling with—the system he had picked lacked resources. Or, rather, it lacked easily accessible resources. New Europa had plenty of resources beneath that ice, but getting them into orbit was impossible without a steady fuel source.

Atlas turned his head toward the speaker. “So, how do we do this, Ship? Without enough mirrors, we won’t get the runaway greenhouse effect. New Europa will keep freezing the ice we melt.”

This was part of the challenge Atlas had with the fungus he created. Genetically engineering something to withstand the negative temperatures was very hard. But combining that with engineering something that could handle the lack of a breathable atmosphere was next to impossible. He was on the 212th genetically engineered version of the fungus, and just like the fungi before them, they did not survive long on the planet.

He needed to distract himself from the challenge. “Talk me through your idea. How would we use a drifting moon to change the orbit of New Europa?”

Ship teleported into the room before replying. “So, there is a dwarf planet—a planetoid—that is drifting through this star system.” Ship paused and a little smile flickered across his face. “It isn’t in a stable orbit around the sun. If we exploded something big on it, we could adjust its orbit enough so that it heads toward the center of this system. Toward this planet.”

Atlas nodded, taking it all in. “So, you’re saying if we caused the planetoid to come close to New Europa, it would shrink New Europa’s orbit—bringing it closer to the star?”

“Exactly,” Ship affirmed, “and it has a seventy-eight percent probability of working.”

“Hmm.” Atlas thought about it for a moment. “Do we have enough time to make this happen?”

“Yes. Sort of. It’s orbiting further away from us now. We have less time than before,” Ship explained.

The risk was too great, Atlas thought. Yes, seventy-eight percent was high. But it was one hundred percent with enough mirrors and enough time.

Atlas shook his head. “It’s too risky; what if the two planets collide? I trust your probability, but too much can go wrong. We have to push the dwarf planet in just the right way to make it come toward this planet. Then it needs to interact with this planet enough to shrink its orbit. Then that orbit change needs to be enough to warm the planet. It’s all a cascading series of events that are less likely than the first.”

“But…” Ship started to counter with more data from Lex.

Atlas cut him off. “Occam’s razor, Ship. The simplest option is always the best.

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