***
Mike was not having a good night. His sleep was disrupted by dreams that only an engineer could have. His mind pictured the multitude of details in the space shuttle, identifying the potential failure of the individual components. He did not actually visualize a crash of the shuttle, but instead pictured a sequential cascade of individual component failures. He awoke feeling drained and more worried about the journey into space than ever. When he arrived at his office, Mary greeted him with a hearty, "Good morning Sir."
Mike was able to produce only a grunted, "Morning." Mary asked him if he had had a tough night. Mike replied, "I spent the whole night re-engineering the space shuttle components and noting their failure probability. The shuttle is outmoded technology and the fleet has got to be feeling the effects of their repeated high G launchings and reentering."
Mary nodded and said she understood his concern. She then asked Mike if he had heard that the Boeing Space plane had completed its testing and that it was scheduled for a trial docking with the ship in three days. Mike was a little surprised that the testing had progressed so completely. Mary then asked if an observer from their command should be present to document the event. Mike began to nod his head and continued her line of reasoning. He said, "An engineer from this department should be on hand and the selection should be done by this office." Mary smiled and asked if she should contact Boeing and the U.N. project director. Mike told her to, "Expedite the request to the director but leave the Boeing Contact to me."
Mike called the chief project engineer at Boeing and asked if there would be room for an observer from his department to accompany the crew during the upcoming docking exercise. The engineer said that plenty of room was available. The observer would have to be present at Edwards Airforce Base for boarding 4 hours prior to departure and that full security clearance was required in addition to active flight status. Mike said he would have an observer cleared and present for boarding on time. The engineer said that he would make the necessary changes in the manifest and asked for the name. Mike replied, "List the observer as a U.N. space project engineer and I will take care of the rest." They visited for a while, discussing how routine space travel was becoming and how the space plane made space travel almost as simple as transoceanic flight. Mike was actually smiling when he finished the conversation. Mary came in and saw the relief on his face and knew he had secured room on the docking mission. She had already obtained the project director's approval for the observer’s position.
Mike asked her to prepare a leave request for the next week and asked when the next transfer to the ship on the shuttle was scheduled for. Mary was a little puzzled about the request for the space shuttle info but said that it was in 10 days. Mike explained that everyone needed to know that he was coming and that she should schedule him aboard the mission. He placed his name in the data section of the director's approval and sat back looking relaxed. Mary had to smile at the dramatic change that had occurred. Mike spent the rest of the day finalizing his preparations and notifying his personnel about his upcoming absence and expected transfer to the ship.
Mike made the trip from Houston to Edwards Airforce Base the next day and presented to security for check in. His orders and ID were scrutinized and he was allowed to proceed only after the computer documented his fingerprint identification. He then presented to the officer of the day, who again reviewed his orders before sending him to the crew room for the pre-flight briefing. The crew was just beginning to assemble and when the pilot came in he immediately recognized Mike. The hearty "Hello" was quickly followed by, "What the hell are you doing here?"
Mike just shrugged his shoulders and said that, "An engineer is needed to observe the docking maneuver and I volunteered."
The pilot seemed to accept this at first and then remarked "But you hate flying." Mike just shrugged his shoulders and said that somebody had to volunteer and he decided that he wanted to make the flight in the space plane that he had designed before leaving on the ship. The pilot could accept this reasoning and welcomed him aboard. Mike ignored most of the preflight briefing and concentrated on controlling his fear of flying.
The small crew was driven out to the tarmac and Mike smiled when they rounded the last hangar and he saw the space plane. It was not designed for beauty but like many things that are well designed it had a symmetry and gracefulness which were without a doubt beautiful. The crew began the final pre-flight inspection and Mike just watched, just as he had during the many test flights. He had never before wanted to experience the flight characteristics and was content to analyze the data following each flight. The plane had accomplished its initial space flights without major problems and if the docking was successful, it would be released for duty within the next month. Unfortunately, the ship was scheduled for departure soon after, which would not allow the space plane to contribute significantly to the construction process. The space plane was dwarfed by the military transports, being about the size of an attack bomber. The delta wing required a very long takeoff roll but the weight savings of avoiding a conversion from a high lift wing to a high speed wing made the takeoff compromise acceptable. Mike boarded with the rest of the crew and strapped himself in. The helmet seemed a little bit of overkill with the pressurization, but the flight engineer said that the noise reduction and ease of communication made it worthwhile. The engine start and run up sounded like that of a high performance fighter, which is what the space plane most closely resembled. Despite the minimal fuel load and light load, the plane accelerated slowly and the runway seemed to pass by for an excessive amount of time. Mike began to worry that they would run out of runway before rotation speed was reached. His fears were relinquished only when the wheels left the ground and they were air-born.
The plane rose gradually over the California Desert. The scram jet engines were not efficient at the low speeds and altitude, but were essential for the final climb and acceleration to orbital velocity. The interior of the plane was sparse, reflecting a military background. As the plane approached it's refueling altitude of 40,000 feet, Mike was able to visualize the KC 10 on the radar screen but was unable to visually identify it until they were within a half mile of the immense tanker. As the pilot locked onto the directional signal and approached to within a few feet of the long tail which extended from the rear of the KC 10, control was assumed by the airforce refueling tech. Mike knew the intricate details of in-air refueling, but the closeness required to actually accomplish the feat was amazing. These two large jet aircraft were flying at Mach .7 at 40,000 feet and control of both planes was assumed by a young airforce technician who sat at a terminal playing what appeared to be a computer game. He very deftly closed the gap between the planes until the maneuverable tail could be inserted into the refueling port of the space plane. Transfer of a full load of fuel was now accomplished and after several minutes the technician announced satisfactory transfer and he separated the planes. Control was returned to the respective pilots. The copilot documented complete filling of the fuel tanks.
With its fuel tanks full and sufficient speed the scram jet engines were now in their realm. The plane's performance was improving at the very time that traditional jet engines were maxed out. As the plane began its ascent to the 100,000 ft. level the copilot opened the oxygen intake port. Mike had adapted the oxygen concentrating technology used in medical oxygen systems to his design. By accumulating the oxygen after refueling, the takeoff weight of the plane had been kept to a manageable level. As the plane ascended the gradually thinning air was forced against the oxygen permeable membrane at high pressure forcing the oxygen molecules through and rejecting the remainder of the air molecules. Compressors transferred the oxygen to high pressure tanks which were cooled by the expanding waste gases from the oxygen port to -65 degrees C. The gradual ascent to 100,000 ft. allowed sufficient time for adequate oxygen accumulation and reduced the G-forces to airline levels. As the fuel weight
declined the weight of the oxygen increased. During this routine portion of the flight, Mike and the pilot discussed the space plane design and performance.
When the copilot was satisfied that sufficient oxygen had been obtained, the pilot increased acceleration to Mach 7. When the space plane reached the 100,000 ft. level the pilot ordered conversion to rocket operation. The air intakes were gradually closed on the scram jet engines and the pressurized oxygen was substituted as the oxidizing agent. The jet fuel now became rocket fuel. The very low density of the air molecules allowed for rapid acceleration. Mike was acutely aware of the increased G-Force and the change in attitude of the plane. He also became aware of the blackness of the sky away from the sun. They used the majority of their fuel and oxygen during this acceleration. A secondary refueling for landing was possible but was unlikely to be needed. The plane would use a very shallow reentry angle and act as a glider for most of the return journey. When they reached orbital velocity of 18,000 miles per hour, the pilot cut the engines and Mike experienced the weightlessness of freefall.
He did not enjoy the experience. The vertigo he was expecting did not develop until he tried moving around. He was thankful for the motion sickness patch that he had applied behind his ear. As the plane rotated he saw the Earth through the small windows. He, like all those before him, was able to fully appreciate the beauty of the Earth only after he had left it. The pilot asked him, "How do you like the view?"
Mike responded, "The view is spectacular, even more so because I have left earth for good."
The pilot was surprised and said, "We will be returning in 32 hours."
Mike replied, "I forgot to mention that I was transferring to the ship and would not be returning."
The pilot said, "I can’t leave you up here."
Mike showed him his orders for transfer on the next shuttle launch and said, "I much prefer riding with you and appreciate the lift."
The pilot advised Mike that he would have to obtain authorization for the transfer. Mike agreed that Captain Brezinski would have to allow him permission to come aboard. The flight engineer was asked to raise Captain Brezinski on the radio. When the Captain was available the pilot identified himself, "This is the pilot of space plane No. 1 requesting authority to transfer Commander Mike Harris to your command."
The Captain was silent for just a few seconds and responded, "And did the commander enjoy the ride in his own plane?"
The pilot responded with an affirmative. Captain Brezinski then approved the transfer and arranged for one of the submarine pilots to meet Mike at the air lock.
As the space plane gradually approached the ship, everyone on board was amazed at the relative size of the comet which was being converted into Mike's new ship and home. As they slowly maneuvered into docking position the docking mechanism was extended from beneath the nose of the plane. This created the image of a sturgeon-like sucker mouth extending from beneath the pointed nose of the plane. This extension was brought into contact with the mating module on the ship. The mechanical cam engaged locking the space plane and the ship together. The copilot announced successful docking.
Mike was more than relieved when the pilot requested permission from Captain Brezinski to allow Mike's transfer to the ship. Captain Brezinski responded, "Permission to transfer is granted and we welcome Commander Harris aboard." Mike was so emotionally spent from the journey that he completed his transfer in an almost mechanical fashion. When he reached the Arachnid and transferred through the air lock, Captain Brezinski was waiting. She again welcomed Mike aboard and said, "You do not like flying very much."
Mike just nodded and then apologized for his unorthodox arrival saying, "The use of primitive rockets seems to multiply the dangers of travel unnecessarily and I was having a hard time with the concept of the space shuttle." Captain Brezinski accepted his explanation and recommended that Mike make getting some sleep his top priority. Doc Jules offered some sleeping medication to help Mike. Mike refused and said, "Now that I am done flying, I should be able to sleep without difficulty." Doc Jules said that he might have some trouble adapting to the zero gravity and if he was having trouble sleeping to just ask for the medicine. Mike just nodded and asked for help to his quarters.
After Mike had left, Captain Brezinski asked Doc Jules his opinion regarding Mike's behavior. Doc Jules thought for a minute and replied, "We all have our personal fears and internal demons that we must wrestle with and I think that Mike won this battle." The Captain wanted his opinion about Mike's ability to continue the mission and Doc Jules said, "If Mike can accept this converted comet as an Earth replacement then he will have minimal difficulty." He expected Mike to adapt within a few days. Mike amazed even Doc Jules by appearing to have adapted almost immediately the next day. He attacked the remaining engineering and construction details with the same intensity as he had on Earth and never complained about the living conditions. Captain Brezinski worried about the remaining crew's reaction to Mike's refusal to ride on the space shuttle, but the rest of the crew transferred without incident.