Idea for a Science Fiction Story
by
Curtis Eickerman


Sometime in the not too distant future an object enters the solar system.  In the process of tracking various comets and asteroids the object is noticed and at first is assumed to be an asteroid in an extremely elliptical orbit.  However, as orbital projections are made it becomes obvious that the object is not actually orbiting the sun at all but is on a hyperbolic trajectory through the solar system.

Since this is now considered to be a highly unusual object a lot of scientific observations are brought to bear.  In the process, deep space radar observations reveal the object has a much higher radar cross section than should correspond with the projected size based upon visual observations.

The Hubble Space telescope is brought to bear on the object and a limited mount of detail is revealed, but nothing conclusive can be determined.  However, as luck would have it, a comet rendezvous probe is on a trajectory that can be modified to bring it very close to the object.  

As the probe nears the rendezvous point the automated mechanisms begin snapping pictures for return to earth.  The pictures are then sent on their journey to earth.

As the pictures begin to display everyone is stunned.  This is no stray asteroid.  This is an artificial probe of some kind.  It is clearly tumbling at a rate that indicates it is not under control.  It is also clear that the radar returns were so large because of the angular metallic structure that is a much better reflector of radar signal than any rock would be.  This is obviously a monumental event, but one that is full of problems.

Already a lot of people know much of what is happening, but it is not completely public knowledge.  Still issues must be resolved about how to tell the general public about this.  Also, despite typical Hollywood movies there can be no manned mission to the probe.  None of the nations have any interplanetary manned launch vehicles or spacecraft.  However, it may be possible to put together a robotic vehicle to attempt to snag-and-return the alien probe.  It requires a Proton launch vehicle along with lashed together U.S. robotic equipment along with A.I. elements to be able to handle the snag in real time so many hours away from earth that lag time would make ground based control impossible.

There are sociological implications relating to finding the alien probe, and there are many who don’t want the recovery mission to succeed.  

The mission takes place and despite a lot of difficulties the alien probe is snagged.

After several months the probe is brought to earth orbit and is within range of retrieval by the Shuttle.

During the several months it takes to get the probe back to earth orbit pictures of the probe are analyzed in great detail to determine if it will be possible to retrieve the probe in the cargo bay of a Shuttle.  Also, after it is determined that retrieval should be possible, ways are devised to lash down the probe for earth return and landing of the Shuttle.  The two Shuttle crewmen responsible for the recovery space walks realize they are going to have to be making things up as they go along because there is not going to be any way to practice fully every step that will be required.  

Finally the Shuttle is launched and intercepts the robot/probe duo.  As the Shuttle station-keeps with the duo everyone realizes that however they do this there will be some damage to the probe because it obviously was never intended to be strapped down in the cargo hold of a Shuttle.  Still everyone is optimistic that they can succeed.  

Finally the day arrives for the recovery operation that is expected to take at least 10 hours of hard work.  One of the astronauts will be working from the Shuttle robotic arm while the other uses a maneuvering pack to manipulate the probe into position.  

Over the period of the next 8 hours the team continues to work the probe into position where it is finally resting on a cradle that has been prepared for it in the Shuttle cargo bay.  Fortunately the estimates of how to best place the probe have worked out and minimal damage is done to one item that appears to be an antenna element.

Finally all the latches are in place and the probe is declared properly anchored for Shuttle return.

The re-entry and landing are reasonably un-eventful with the landing taking place at the Kennedy Space Flight Center in Florida  as originally planned.

Once the normal landing servicing is done to the Shuttle the vehicle is returned to the Vertical Assembly Building in order to remove the probe from the cargo bay.

Before removal an extensive photographic record is made of the probe while it is still in place just in case there is some damage or problem that occurs during the removal process.

During this process much of what appears to be labels and directions on the probe are photographed in great detail.  Also it is clear that the probe was intended as a deep space mission because it obviously used a nuclear reactor type of power source which is obviously now depleted.

What is much less obvious is exactly how long the probe has been in space.  Clearly it is ancient, but whether it has been in space thousands or millions of years is the subject of much speculation.  Estimates based upon the rate of arrival in the solar system and tracing the trajectory back from the nearest possible stellar systems would indicate travel times of almost 10 million years.  Yet there is no way to be sure if it’s launch point might be even further away or from an as yet unknown nearby companion to our system.

In the mean time examination of the probe has revealed a plaque somewhat like the one we had placed on our Voyager speacecraft in the 20th century.  However, this plaque seems somewhat more cryptic than the one we had believed to be so easy to understand.  Of course this plaque probably was envisioned as being easily understood as well.

The plaque is finally removed from the probe and turned over to a crypto analysis group from Langley for an attempt at decoding.  Of course this is going to take some doing since there is no common point of understanding from which to begin the analysis.  But the analysts jump on this as the find of a lifetime.

In the mean time continued analysis of the probe gives a few interesting surprises.  First people are beginning to believe that the builders of the probe were of a similar stature to human beings.  This is concluded based upon the continued ability to work on the probe without having to bend in funny ways and not requiring extreme contortions to funny shaped appendages to reach things during the disassembly process.  Clearly fasteners do not match any standards and the machinists have been busy constructing tools, but the tools that are required look remarkably ordinary.  

There is a little bit of progress deciphering the plaque.  It is noted that there are some basic number sequences and something that seems to be the equivalent of an alphabet as well as what appears to be a calendar.  The most fascinating thing is that if the calendar really is a calendar it indicates that the probe’s equivalent of a year is 360 days which is astonishing.  There are also indications that the plaque contains information about building something that can be used to extract further information from the probe.

In the mean time progress is still being made in the process of disassembly and analyzing the rest of the probe.  Everyone is still rather amazed how easy the disassembly process and cataloging of parts is going.  It is also rather amazing to everyone how relatively easily they are able to identify various functional elements of something that is totally alien.  Transmitting and receiving equipment is very recognizable as is a laser communication  system.  Analysis of the power system is promising, and it appears that very soon some of the probe’s systems may be able to be “powered-up” for the first time in uncounted ages.  Of course the possibility that circuits within the probe are still functional after ages in deep space is the subject of considerable debate.

Some additional progress has also been made on reconstructing some of the “weathered” markings on the external surfaces of the probe.  This may become more important as the language deciphering program gets a little farther along with the plaque.

There have been further attempts at locating the particular system that the probe was believed to have come from, but the uncertainties in the calculations are pretty large and the possibilities are pretty wide open.  To narrow the possibilities the velocity of the probe is combined with estimates of age based upon space weathering of the probes external surfaces.  While this results in a pretty gross estimate the estimates are suggesting that the probe has been in space for somewhere between 20  and 40 million years.  Interestingly enough the estimates of the nuclear power system operational life are also suggesting a capability of 35 to 45 million years.  All of this along with ion thrusters on the probe indicate the probe just might have been operational until just shortly before it entered the neighborhood of our system give or take a couple of million years.  Now everyone is wondering what would have happened if it had arrived under its own power.

The time is approaching to attempt applying power to portions of the probe to determine if the estimates regarding the power system are correct.  Fortunately we have been able to isolate a section of circuitry that doesn’t appear to be terribly important in order to test the theories without too much risk of damage.  The circuitry is powered up slowly while monitoring every parameter that was believed to be important.  As the power is slowly brought up to operational levels the circuit clearly begins to function.  While not doing anything particularly obvious, several lights begin flashing, and test equipment attached to the module reveal signs of electrical life within the module.  Of course no one can begin to speculate on what those signs of life actually mean.  However, this is a critical step because we can now begin powering up other modules without risking serious damage and decipher their functions one by one.

Everyone is still rather amazed that something from an alien culture bears such similarity to items that are recognizable.  Circuit boards are rather obvious, although components themselves look rather unusual.  Components are not attached to circuitry with solder as we do, but appear to be welded to the inconnecting circuitry.  This is probably why circuits are still functional after so many millennia in a hostile environment.  The engineers continue to be amazed that as circuit after circuit is powered there appear to be no obvious component failures.  Whoever built this thing built it to last a really long time and did their job well.  

In the mean time the crypto analysis at Langley has been achieving some success in decoding the plaque.  It has been confirmed that the plaque contains information relating to extracting additional information from the system.  Fortunately it appears that the probe designers have thought well ahead, and provided all the extraction equipment within the probe itself.  In this respect they did better than we did in providing recorded data on one of our probes without including a playback mechanism (but then again we don’t know how to make a playback mechanism that is likely to withstand millions of years of space travel and remain functional).  There are some portions of the instructions on the plaque that still have the analysts baffled so extracting the information remains beyond our reach at this point, but it seems that it is just a matter of time now.  So far the biggest news is discovering details of the stellar system where the probe may have originated.

In deciphering some of the information on the plaque is appears that the system of origin contained 13 primary planets, and that home world was the 4th planet from its sun.  There were also a 5th and 6th planet of similar composition and beyond that there were 4 gas giants but none with rings like Saturn.  Beyond the four gas giants were three more rocky planets, one in an elliptical orbit and one in an extreme elliptical orbit that crossed the orbit of the 6th planet but also extended well into the equivalent of the Oort cloud region, and another that crossed the path of the 4th planet.

From the information regarding orbits of the various planets of the alien system extrapolations were under way to determine what likely might have happened to the system while the probe was in transit.  Clearly the system was likely unstable with multiple crossing orbits, but it was still to early to tell what the overall effects would be in such a system.  Still it appears highly likely that planetary collisions or near misses could be anticipated.  One could only imagine what might have happened to the builders of the probe during this time.

© 2003, Curtis Eickerman, All Rights Reserved


   
 

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