CHAPTER 1
COST OF SPACE
* * *
"Murray, now that you and the engineers at Mercedes-Benz have figured out a way to get to Mars and return safely, we owe NASA the proposal we promised," Matt Flynn told his brother. "The Red Box and Turbopod play key roles in the mission. Let's package your concept and all the calculations into a briefing for presentation at the end of the month. NASA has asked us to provide a bid for our consulting services, and we don't want to disappoint them, much less President Werner."
"I know, Matt, but ..."
"But what?"
"Well the more I think about it, the more I realize that going to Mars is the wrong thing to do," Murray said.
"What do you mean?" Matt asked with a real concern in his voice.
"Well, brother, let's review the situation," Murray replied. "First, why are we going there? The answer can't be that it's in the human nature to explore. That was fine for Columbus. But his goal was to find riches for Spain. We can't say that about Mars. After 15 probes of one kind or another, we're not even sure there's water there, much less riches of some sort to benefit mankind. In my opinion, the return on the investment simply isn't there."
"Murray, please explain your logic to your dense brother," Matt said.
"OK. I'll try," Murray said. "First, let's look at the cost. Industry calculates that to put a kilogram — that's 2.2 pounds — in orbit costs $10,000. Each Apollo landing on the moon cost $18 billion in 1960s dollars. Given the number of necessary launches and infrastructure to support a Mars mission, the cost could be $500 billion dollars. Even a consortium of nations doesn't have that kind of money. And there are more pressing social needs today. But the real question — the showstopper, really — is what do we get for the money?"
Matt looked intently at his brother, then took a deep breath and said, "I'm listening. What are your concerns?"
"Well let me list a few," Murray replied. "First, Mars' atmosphere is 1 percent of that of the Earth. We would have to bring our own oxygen, and to make enough oxygen to support a base would take many missions. And while Mars' daytime temperature is about 60 degrees, at night it's minus 100 degrees."
"That's pretty cold," Matt said.
"And that's not all," Murray continued. "You can't take enough water. One scientific estimate is 127 tons of water would be required to support a small team of astronauts during the 1,100-day mission," Murray said. "And they have to eat, too. Based upon our experience at the International Space Station, each astronaut would need 2 tons of freeze-dried food. Of course, they won't eat much if the sun's radiation kills them first. And the swelling of the optic nerve could lead to blindness."
"You're a real ray of sunshine, you know that?" Matt joked.
"I'm serious, Matt. The Martian soil may be toxic with its chlorinated salts would be bad for the thyroid gland. And dust would cover everything," Murray said. "Which is to say nothing of the psychological effects of such a mission. The recently completed Mars-500 project, where a small crew remained isolated in a small enclosure, highlighted the potential psychological problems that astronauts could face."
"What about mining Mars?" Matt asked.
"Mining would be a waste of time and resources," Murray said. "It wouldn't be cost-effective to bring it back. Don't you see, Matt? All mission planning to date is single-string. There is no redundancy to reduce risk. Even our own plan is single-string!"
"OK, I get the picture, Murray," Matt said. "If not Mars, what about Venus?"
"It's the same situation but even worse — it's 750 degrees there!" Murray exclaimed.
"Wow. I had no idea," Matt said, shaking his head from side to side. "So what's the solution?"
Murray was quick to reply. "In our briefing to NASA, we provide two missions. The first is the Mars mission we've developed, complete with its quarter-trillion-dollar price tag. The second mission is to the moon at a fraction of the cost and with the potential for a real payback. The plan is to develop technologies on the moon that can be directly applied to counter Earth's global warming."
"Like what?" Matt asked.
"Well," Murray began, "there are a number of technologies that can be developed and tested on the moon which can make a difference — an indoor greenhouse with hydroponics on a large-scale such as an O'Neill cylinder, economic desalination to split water to get oxygen and longer-life batteries that are truly disposable."
"Impressive," Matt said.
"And that's just the tip of the iceberg. There could be inflatable structures with hardened ceramic coatings, wearable sensor systems on clothing, advanced retinal communications, anti-muscle- and bone-loss processes, even lower cost solar power from 3-D printed panels. And there are dozens more we can discuss with the NASA engineers and scientists."
"I see what you mean, Murray," Matt said. "Saving our planet is a top priority, and the moon base can be instrumental in this effort. But what if NASA insists on going to Mars? Can we play an active role? Should we?
Murray thought for a moment before replying. "Matt, we're already billionaires," he said. "We don't need the consulting money. We need to apply the Red Box anti-gravity device in a wide variety of transportation applications that will reduce the carbon footprint."
"Brother, you're right as usual," Matt replied. "We'll start on the briefing in the morning."
CHAPTER 2
MARS vs. MOON
* * *
A day later Matt called Reiner Strassburg, Chief Engineer at the Mercedes-Benz Research & Development Center in Sindelfingen, Germany, a suburb of Stuttgart.
"Reiner, my friend!" Matt began. "Now that your team and my brother have a possible solution for a Mars mission, please plan to accompany Murray and me when we brief the Director of NASA in Huntsville at the end of the month."
"Count me in," Reiner replied. "And if it's OK with you, I'd like to bring two associates: a propulsion engineer and a mechanical engineer who led the Turbopod redesign for space travel."
"That's a great idea. I'll call you soon when I have a meeting date and time," Matt said as he hung up the phone.
A week later, Matt got a call from NASA confirming the meeting at 10 a.m. on May 26 in Huntsville. He phoned Reiner to relay the information. "We're on at NASA on May 26," he said. "Please provide the names and vital statistics of your associates so we can clear them through security. And please plan to come here to Miami on the 24 so we can do a dry run of the briefing and confirm our strategy."
"Will do, Matt," Reiner replied. "I look forward to seeing both of you again and planning our next exciting joint venture."
On the morning of May 24, Reiner and his two colleagues, Dieter Wexler and Miriam Zimmerman, arrived at the Red Box manufacturing facility in south Miami. Murray greeted them in the lobby and escorted the team to the conference room where Matt sat at the end of the table. As they entered the room, Matt rose and welcomed his friend and new associates with open arms. Matt's wife, Heather, served coffee and bagels while the engineers set up their laptops.
Matt spoke first. "We've sure come a long way in the last two and half years — from the first Baldie seaplane trials to the Baldie barnstorming campaign to the Turbopod trials in Ordos, China, to the award ceremonies in Washington," he said. "Now we are asked to find a way to get to Mars and return safely. Reiner, Murray and I want to express our sincere gratitude for the work your team did in developing this Mars mission."
Reiner pointed to the device in the middle of the conference table and said, "All of our engineering and calculations revolved around your Red Box. Without it, it would be impractical, maybe impossible."
"Well said!" Matt exclaimed while powering up his laptop to begin the briefing. The first slide appeared as Murray walked to the front of the room to begin the briefing.
"First, let me thank Dieter for his support with all those propulsion calculations," Murray said as he clapped his appreciation. "Thank you, Dieter, and thank you, Miriam, for your T-Pod spacecraft designs. You did so many versions as our planning evolved. I particularly appreciate the genius of the simple mate-collar that enables multiple spacecraft to become a functioning cluster, or Mars Base."
Murray applauded again as everyone in the room looked at Miriam with nodding heads and a chorus of "Bravo!"
Murray then surprised his guests by saying, "We have prepared two briefings for NASA. The first one is the Mars mission, which we have developed over the past two months, and the second one ..."
Just then Reiner interjected, "And the second one must be to the moon."
Murray's eyes grew wide before he furrowed his brow and asked, "How did you know?"
Reiner was ready with an answer. "The price tag and danger level of a Mars mission are too high given the return on investment. Our computers worked overtime to calculate the quarter-trillion-dollar estimate, which is low in my opinion and provides no redundant safety margins."
"Precisely," Murray said.
"And while we quietly support the European Space Agency's Mars mission planning, the real payoff for Earth can be a moon base," Reiner continued. "Our chairman agrees and is ready to support your moon mission, Matt."
Murray sat down, reflected for a few seconds, then said, "This is fantastic. But Reiner, I have to warn you about one thing."
"What's that?" the stoic German asked as he peered over his horn-rimmed glasses.
"Matt and I will only actively work on the moon mission. We'll formally submit both briefings to NASA, but we won't be involved in subsequent activities of any kind on the Mars mission. We will make it quite clear that our energies and resources must be focused on a successful moon mission because of its potential impact on Earth. Matt keeps reminding me about the dying polar bears!"
"I understand," Reiner replied.
Murray then added, "Of course, Mercedes-Benz is free to contract with NASA to support the Mars mission in any way you choose. It's your corporate decision alone."
"Thank you, Matt and Murray," Reiner said. "Let's see how this planning exercise plays out over the coming months. But let me make it quite clear that our company already has its hands full trying to meet all of the applications for the Red Box. And the more we develop electric vehicles, the more we help solve the global warming problem."
Matt then took the floor and brought up the moon mission slides to level-set the audience. For the next two hours Matt and Murray disclosed their detailed planning for a moon mission. It borrowed much from the Mars mission plan, but made more economic, social, and environmental sense.
The team was ready for the trip to Huntsville.
* * *
At 5 p.m. on the evening of May 25, two Turbopods, or T-Pods as they were known, took off from the Homestead Airport southwest of Miami and headed west over Everglades National Park. Captain Jim Russell piloted the T-Pod carrying Matt and Maggie; Murray's wife piloted the other. Reiner flew with Murray, while Dieter and Miriam flew with Matt. The two craft passed over Naples, Florida, at 1,000 feet and turned north over the Gulf of Mexico. Two hours later, the T-Pods landed at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Vance, Alabama. The T-Pods were secured in a large warehouse and the Red Boxes stored in a safe. The team had dinner as the guests of Production Manager Reinhold Timm. The team spent the night at a quaint bed & breakfast in Tuscaloosa 15 miles west of the plant.
At 8:00 AM the following morning, the two T-Pods headed northeast for the 30-minute flight to Huntsville. Reinhold was a passenger in Murray's craft. An hour before the scheduled meeting, the T-Pods were cleared to land on the lawn behind the headquarters. The team was escorted through security and set up several laptops on the director's conference table. Matt went to the window and saw the two T-Pods, and out of the corner of his eye he saw the two Red Boxes in Murray's valise.
Ten minutes later, Director Don Golden led his team into the room and warmly greeted the Flynn brothers and their colleagues. The parties took their seats at the conference table. The director began, "Three months ago we met here, Mr. Flynn, and asked you and your team to assist us with the planning for a Mars mission. "Pointing to his team, he continued, "We're eager to see what your solution is and how it might differ from our current baseline. Matt, the floor is yours."
"Thank you, Director Golden," Matt said as he motioned to Murray to start his briefing.
"Ladies and gentlemen," began the confident Matt, "we have a two-part briefing for you today, which I will explain in detail. I also will provide a written report within two weeks per our consulting contract."
For 40 minutes Murray outlined the Mars mission concept, which relied heavily on the use of Red Boxes and their ability to enable weightless launch vehicles, crew modules, and service modules. Highlights of the solution included:
• A redesigned T-Pod for long-term deep space travel with radiation shielding, small windows, and electric-powered ion thrust engines.
• One T-Pod to serve as the command module and the other to serve as the service module; both would sit atop the launch vehicle as it lifts off from Cape Kennedy.
• A launch vehicle with small engines would contain an imbedded logistics module.
• The three modules would travel as a caravan, using the moon to "slingshot" it into deep space.
• Halfway to Mars, the logistics module separates and station-keeps until the return of the command module. This module has oxygen resupply, water, food, fresh batteries, and a waste disposal system. The command module mates with the logistics module via a mate collar. The astronauts will rejuvenate there for two days during the return.
• Halfway through the 1,120-day mission, the command module controls the descent of the service module to the surface of Mars.
• The service module contains a laboratory, communications systems, power systems, backup oxygen, dust filters, inflatable solar panels, and an optical telescope which is left behind for subsequent missions.
• After confirming the readiness of the service module, the command module lands next to it and mates via the mate collar.
• The four-person crew (two males and two females) will spend 16 days on Mars conducting experiments, collecting samples, and following protocols sent from Mission Control in Houston.
• On Day 581 of the mission, the command module will fire its redundant aerozine thrusters to lift off the planet to rendezvous with the logistics module.
• On Day 841, the command module will separate from the service module and head to the Space Station, where the astronauts will be quarantined until a microbe analysis confirms their cleanliness. Some of the samples will be left at the Space Station for certain experiments.
• On Day 1,120, the command module slowly falls to Earth with the aid of parachutes and the throttle-down of the Red Box's antigravity capability. The module will land in water just off the coast of Cape Kennedy. At this point, the "Bald Eagle" module has landed.
At this point in the briefing, Murray asked the audience to go to the window and observe the two T-Pods joined by a mate collar put in place by engineers Timm and Zimmermann.
The director led a round of applause. As the group returned to the table, Murray took his seat and spoke in slow, distinct, and very measured sentences.
"Sir, our second mission plan is a revisit to the moon," Murray said. He then looked around the table to judge the reaction. There was only silence.
He continued, "The price of our Mars mission is based upon a few pages of assumptions. The price tag for this proposed mission is more than a quarter-trillion dollars. The mission is single-thread, and everyone in this room knows what that means. The mission is as dangerous as it is portrayed by the movie industry. For our team, the risk-reward ratio is unacceptable."
"Fascinating, Mr. Flynn. Please give us some more of your logic," Director Golden said.
