Then he explained to Tom what was necessary to travel in space. “Making sure fuel can be recycled is essential. There is no telling if we will be able to find elements that we could convert into energy in either space or another planet.”
Dorothy, who had done a lot of the work on newer model spaceships, was nodding her head in agreement with what Carson explained. She also had some suggestions for the propulsion systems. Both of them estimated it might be necessary for around eight rockets with an equal thrust to be attached to boost the spacecraft and lift it into orbit. The spaceship could weigh as much as 50,000 to 100,000 tons.
Dorothy said, “Think of the Oasis Cruise ship built by Royal Caribbean. That ship holds six thousand passengers. Imagine trying to lift that ship off the ground. That would require an amazing amount of force. These rockets would be unmanned and controlled by the spacecraft. We have to determine the kind of fuel or fuels the spaceship will use. It may be possible to make more through chemical reactions, but that is not guaranteed yet. Failure to recycle the fuel might result in a motionless spacecraft that cannot go anywhere or be forced to wander aimlessly until by some gravitational pull it is forced to land or crash on an uninhabited planet or asteroid. The more fuel we carry, the heavier the ship will be, making it harder to attain the speeds we need. That is another consideration to think about.
“We may also be able to use some of the work by the late Stephen Hawking to fly the spacecraft. His work focused on moving a rather small spaceship via light beams. There are several other possibilities, of course, but so far, no scientist has developed a fuel to fly a spaceship this big at the desired speed. Another possibility is to build a Kugel blitz engine that will increase our chances of flying at warp speed through a black hole that the engine will create. This will enable interstellar travel. We still have to build a warp bubble around the ship to protect us as we travel at such speeds. This is going to take an extraordinary amount of research. We can’t be sure this will be ready before we leave. Unfortunately for Stephen Hawking, he acquired ALS and died from it.”
Tom thought about what Carson and Dorothy were saying, but he also wondered if Dr. Sato’s stem cell research could have saved Hawking if the government would have encouraged or allowed it.
Dorothy continued, “It is also necessary to figure out if we could use his research to innovate our speed limits on such a large spaceship. These innovative scientists were working towards finding a way to reach neighboring planet systems. It was planned to fly at ultra-light travel or at one hundred million miles an hour or even faster. At one hundred million miles an hour, it would take perhaps twenty years to reach Alpha Centauri where there may be some habitable planets. Although Alpha Centauri is the nearest star system to us, it still lies roughly 4.37 light-years away. That is equal to more than 25.6 trillion miles, or more than 276,000 times the distance from Earth to the sun. If we can fly at five hundred million miles an hour, we can do it in four years. It has not yet been done. We are not even close to accomplishing that. We are in the very beginning of new research to get spaceships to fly at warp speed, which would be best if we can make it happen. We are going to need engine specialists, mathematicians, computer experts and engineers to figure this out.
“Also, if we can fly at such supersonic speeds, we need to ensure that the integrity of the spacecraft remains intact. If you remember, this has been one of the main problems for several rockets that blew up after takeoff. The outside of the spacecraft or heat shields will probably have to withstand extreme heat and cold. We cannot have any part of the spaceship start to burn up causing the whole ship to break apart. When we have figured out the best way to maximize our speed, we will let you know. At the current speed of a spacecraft, which is Mach 4, it would take over a hundred years to travel that far. What we will try to do is develop warp speed.”
“Wow,” Tom said. “If you can ensure we lift off without any problems and get us going at warp speed, it would be absolutely fantastic. We would like you to start working as soon as possible. We can provide you with the finest facilities and laboratories to concentrate on your work. Several individuals are funding us, so money is not an issue. If there is anything you need, just ask for it. Please invite the best people you can find to work on this. Without your success, we cannot launch. Are you ready to accept the positions? You are both very qualified, and I know I can speak for Bob in saying so.”
Bob nodded in agreement.
Both Carson and Dorothy said they were willing to join the team. They had worked together in the past at NASA. Besides, there was so much work to do, and most of it had never been accomplished before.
Tom left it to them to recruit a full team of experts and develop possible plans for the propulsion systems and other requirements for traveling at such speeds. Also, they were told to work on a new space shuttle that could leave and return quickly to the spacecraft. Each shuttle needed to be built to hold about six to eight people. They had to be capable of entering a planet’s atmosphere without burning up, landing on a planet’s surface, and taking off again. The shuttles were needed since they did not want to land the spacecraft on a world that was not habitable or might break up upon landing, dooming everyone to living on the wrong planet or one that could not sustain life. When the shuttle landed, tests could be conducted on that planet’s atmosphere and soil or rock. They could also check to see if there was water. It could also be used to fly near the spacecraft to inspect any damage or for astronauts or others to make repairs to the outside of the vessel. This space shuttle would be similar to the ones that were previously built by NASA but capable of doing much more.
Bob said, “We’ll need to test this space shuttle before we launch.”
They all promised to keep in constant contact as they progressed in their work.
It was one thing to make some bio-engineered food for a voyage with no arable land and attempting to thrive on a ship. It was a lot more complicated to finish the spaceship. It would require a lot of sweat and tears.
Back at home, Tom stood in front of his refrigerator, glancing at magnets from all over Colorado that his family had collected over the years. His wife was already in bed. Just a small late-night snack would settle his nerves. He knew that no one on the team would do anything to embarrass him in making the mission happen. Despite this hopefulness, he still wondered about how his own government would attempt to discredit his project on Twitter or in conversations with any of the multitude of men and women who dreaded new views. He wondered what pioneers had once carried in wagons across the land and how much they sacrificed for a better chance that lay ahead of them one danger after another. At least they’d have refrigeration.
Chapter 10 – Cooking for a Thousand
Tom Burns, Aurora, CO
Sitting in his office at home, he was pleased with the team that was coming together. He was sad that he wasn’t around to spend more time with his son. But the amount of preparation demanded all of his attention if they were actually going to be able to succeed. Now, Tom was happy to almost have a chef and nutritionist on board.
He thought about his son’s eating habits. All Sam has on his mind is baseball and hot dogs it seems. The last time they indulged in that type of fun, the TV had broken into their bonding time. The political ineptitude and focus on creating more tension in the world weren’t the only things that had stirred Tom into action. Strategies girded only the ones already circling themselves with massive hidden reserves. It was now once again a favorite American pastime of the well-to-do.