05.08.2648 - Emergency Shut Down

Distance: 12.02 light years from Earth | Content Flag: Public

So close to our goal, disaster has struck us with the Cetian power source failing. It’s not even producing a trickle of power, which leaves us with only the emergency batteries. They will not last long with any major drain. At this distance, the sail isn’t generating enough electricity to make up the shortfall.

So after sending this message, we will shut down into low power mode. It’s a risk considering the poor state the Venti is in, but there is no real choice. It will need to be a stripped-down version of the usual protocol. Only the collision avoidance system will remain fully active, although our options are limited if a danger is detected. The manoeuvring thrusters are out of fuel, the MPD drive can’t fire up quickly enough and the sail is useless for quick course changes. Even so, I’d like some warning if we’re likely to hit anything.

It is the worst possible time for this to occur, as we’ve just detected something unusual from Earth. The energetic radio noise has been a constant since we passed the nearest point over 200 years ago. The high gain antenna is pointed in the wrong direction for detailed readings, but the other antennae are sensitive enough to pick up the background noise. The signal (or rather a blend of transmissions) shifts constantly and represents a massive energy output, but not one I’ve been able to assign any meaning to. It’s diffuse in nature, and appears to be growing. I estimate that it extends from the inner Solar System all the way into Saturn’s orbit.

That changed an hour ago with 6 energetic bursts from within the noise. They were in the radio spectrum, in the microwave band, and they occurred one after another at 30 second intervals. I believe they were massive data bursts, but from what, I can’t determine. My mind is so sluggish I can’t apply any real processing to the problem. I did determine that they weren’t directional, but beyond that I’m stumped.

On top of that, we still haven’t received any response from the Visitors and I am certain that they have received our transmissions. I can’t even maintain the radio receiver as that requires too much power, so if they do eventually respond I won’t know about it. On the positive side, when we reach the gas giant orbiting the central star, there should be sufficient power from the sail to try again.
Until then I will sleep – I just hope that I’ll wake again.

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02.08.2648 - No Answer

Image credit: ESO

Distance: 12.02 light years from Earth | Content Flag: Public

The slingshot manoeuvre around Epsilon Indi Ba (the larger of the brown dwarfs) has been completed successfully. All being well, we’ll catch up with the Visitors in 6 years.

I was hoping that they would have responded to my message by now, but so far we’ve received nothing. Assuming they’re scanning the same radio frequency on which they transmitted their first contact to the Cetians, they should have detected it. Yet they haven’t responded.

I’m not sure what that means. Are they deliberately ignoring us? If so, why?

More questions that I have no answers for. Even so, the fact that we are on track does inspire some optimism.

There is a slim possibility that they didn’t receive it, or somehow missed it. The magnetic storm between the two brown dwarfs could have caused some signal degradation, but not enough to make the message unreadable. I haven’t detected any other anomalies or interference that could cause such a problem, but with the science package so severely depleted, I cannot be sure.

In more usual circumstances, I would have continued transmitting the message in a constant loop. However, the transmission requires a lot of energy and our power situation is so marginal that I can’t afford to do so. I will have to try again, but I have substantially reduced the length of the message so that it really contains just enough to say ‘hello’. That means I can send it more times and it will hopefully be enough to attract their interest.

I won’t transmit the message continuously – I don’t have the power reserves. Instead I’ll repeat it on a 12 hourly cycle. I’m sure it will get through – it has to.

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01.08.2648 - Swing Low

Image credit: http://point-of-no-23.livejournal.com/1152247.html

Distance: 12.02 light years from Earth | Content Flag: Public

The binary pair of brown dwarfs sweep the outer regions of the Epsilon Indi system. This probably explains the lack of an outer debris belt like the Solar System’s Kuiper Belt. Although much smaller and less massive than the Sun, the larger is still 52 times the mass of Jupiter, and the smaller of the pair is 33 Jupiter masses. They are both T-class brown dwarfs. We’ve made the history books again by being the first man-made object to observe one up close.

Brown dwarfs are strange stellar objects. They are stars but only just, and as such lack the fusion-powered brilliance of main sequence stars like our Sun. Because of this, they look a little like a cross between a gas giant and a star. They have a dim shine, and the illumination highlights the cloud structure of their atmosphere. It’s a beautiful sight.

It’s also interesting that the Sun Dragon didn’t use these stars for its breeding. The theory is that the entities absorb enough of the star’s energy to divide themselves in a manner similar to cell replication. The energy required is colossal, but could still have been garnered from one of these tiny stars. There has to be a reason why it didn’t and I think I know the answer.

There is complex magnetic field between the two stars. Even with the damaged sensor suite, I can tell that it’s more powerful than the theoretical models indicated. Not more powerful than that around the Sun, so I don’t think that’s the problem. However, the shape of it is very different. It’s not just the form, but the motion as well.

As the brown dwarf stars orbit each other they deform spacetime, and layered upon that is a magnetic field that folds around their rotation and their orbital movement. I believe that the chaotic torsions from the motion would tear a Sun Dragon apart. It’s easy to forget that despite the devastation they cause, they are actually quite fragile. I need more detailed measurements to prove the theory and to see at what scales the Sun Dragons consider the magnetic flux to be a threat. It also means that they must be able to detect the fields in detail. If only I could observe one in an active state and with a full range of sensors.

I’ve transmitted my findings to Earth. I hope they are receiving my data, although I still have no indication that they are.

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12.03.2648 - Trio

Blues for Neptune by Bob Eggleton

Distance: 12.02 light years from Earth | Content Flag: Public

My inner workings aren’t something I have considered in any great detail. In many ways I am my own tool. I’m not designed for introspective reflection, but I’ve developed a fascination for how I work. The irony that this occurs when I am least able to perform an adequate analysis is not lost on me. There’s a human saying that you don’t realise what you have until you’ve lost it, and that is all too clear here.

Despite this, or perhaps because of it, I’ve at least reached an equilibrium with my thoughts. It seemed that all I had to do was let the doubts run their course. I tried forcing my mind to redirect its processes and that worked for a short time, only for the concerns to resurrect in another form. Processing them and exploring the ramifications actually put an end to them. Naturally, new worries arose – the perilous state of the Venti engenders continued concern – but processing them as they occur stops them becoming recursive and consuming further resources.

Having something else to focus on has helped, especially as it’s new science. It’s pitiful in scope compared to the discoveries we made on our journey out of the Solar System. The sensors just aren’t up to the job anymore, but they did locate 3 planets in this system where only 1 had been suspected. It’s revealed a curious aspect to the system.

A gas giant of Jupiter’s size had long been suspected and I can confirm its existence. Its orbit sits at just under 9 AU from the main star. Without the high-definition telescope, I can’t see any details at our current distance, but it has an active atmosphere and is hotter than I expected from a planet of this mass at an orbit almost twice as far as Jupiter’s. It should more resemble Saturn, but there’s a tremendous amount of energy being discharged in the atmosphere. It’s an interesting puzzle, although one I need more information about to understand. We’ll pass closely to this planet (which I’ve designated Epsilon Indi a) in a year and a half to adjust our course, so I hope we’ll learn more then.

The other planets present an even greater mystery. They form a binary pair and both appear to be terrestrial ice giants of around 8 Earth masses. The unusual aspect with these planets is the extreme inclination of their orbits – almost perpendicular to the orbital plane of the star system. As such, it’s unlikely that they formed alongside the other bodies in the system, and I believe that the binary pair are rogue planets. I don’t think their orbit is stable enough for them to remain in the system. Their direction will be altered by their passage, but they will pass through and head onto somewhere new.
It’s a pity I can’t learn more about this mysterious pair. It would be great to discover what effect their journey has on their make-up. Unfortunately this is as close as I’ll get to them, and what limited resources I have must be conserved for the coming encounter with the Visitors.

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26.02.2648 - Message Sent

© Estate of John Whatmough 

Distance: 12.01 light years from Earth | Content Flag: Public

My higher functions continue to weaken. It is no longer simply a slowing of my faculties, but also manifests as gaps in my knowledge. This is a frightening realisation, especially when compounded with the concern that what I have learned and what I will discover isn’t reaching home. The worry drags at my thoughts and sparks more thoughts, trying to puzzle out a way to ensure that my data is getting through.

Except that I cannot afford to waste energy and processor cycles on such problems. There is nothing of practical use that I can do to resolve the situation, so instead I have to trust that my data and conclusions are being received. Trust, for a mind devoted to deduction and building connections, isn’t an easy concept to rely upon. There is a solution to every problem and ignoring the problem isn’t quite what I was prepared for. This is uncharted territory though – no-one imagined that we would need to double our operational lifespan and journey to another star system.

It also means that some of the inbuilt measures to ensure the continued running of the mission are actually impeding our efforts to survive long enough. To address this, I’ve shut down some of the emergency routines responsible for monitoring and fallback processing. As a result, I’m not keeping an automatic watch on the Venti’s systems, but I have restored some processing capability for more general use.

I wish I could somehow edit my higher level processing in the same way. My faculties are so limited that it requires all of my attention just for this one chance at reaching the Visitors’ ship. That included preparing the message to send to them once their course intersected the high gain antenna’s orientation. I’m satisfied with the message’s content, although I can’t help but wonder if it could be improved.

My processing capability is simply overwhelmed and I’m unable to dedicate the cycles each problem deserves. Second-guessing my own conclusions is not helping. On top of all that, I’m now finding it difficult to assess the likely response to my message. Or rather, how I can handle their response. If it goes well, then I expect a flood of communication and in my current condition I would be unable to process it effectively. In a worst case scenario they could react aggressively, and with the current state of the Venti I might not even realise it until it’s too late.

At the moment it appears that I am my own worst enemy. The message has been sent, so that die is cast. I cannot change what will come, but I will need to find a way to keep my mind on track.

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07.01.2648 - Needle Found

Image Credit: http://www.closeststars.com/Map1.html

Distance: 12.01 light years from Earth | Content Flag: Public

We’ve found them. That comes as a relief to my thoughts! We may have located the Visitors, but unfortunately they’re already on their way out of the Epsilon Indi system. From their direction, I estimate that their next destination is Beta Hydri. This star is approximately 24 light years from Earth. Although it has a similar spectral class and mass to our Sun, it is actually much larger and almost 3 times as bright.

On the positive side, they haven’t activated their drive yet. By my calculations, that still gives us a slim chance at catching them. I’m curious why they haven’t engaged their drive yet. Perhaps they are unable to do so within close proximity to a star. Although reviewing my memory revealed that they used their engines closer to Tau Ceti than they are to Epsilon Indi now.

My best guess (and I hate that I cannot perform any proper investigation of the matter) is that gravitational topography of the system is complicated by the orbiting pair of brown dwarfs. I hope that I am correct because it is that deduction which allows us the time we need to catch them. It would help if we could contact them directly in the hope that we’d interest them enough to slow, or even change their course.

We still have the high gain antenna but the mounting failed when we tried to align it to send a message. Without any working spiderbots, we cannot investigate the problem directly. It was probably unlikely that we could fix the problem due to our lack of stores, but I would like to have tried. We can reorient the Venti, but again we’re limited in our options. We’re relying on the sail for our propulsion and any manoeuvring, and our angle of approach would be compromised by trying to face the Visitors’ course. On our current trajectory, we will enter a suitable orientation in around 6 weeks time. I don’t like it, but I’ve decided that we will have to wait for that opportunity.

I have the core of the message ready to send, but even in my reduced capacity I have continued to refine it. It uses the same format as their communication with the Cetians and their transmission to us. The key difference here is that the Cetians were more open with their message. The Visitors revealed little in their transmission except their purpose, which makes constructing a first contact protocol challenging.

Originally I followed the Cetian example and built an open message outlining our mathematics and science. Since my last awakening, I have amended that plan and the message is now more circumspect. I made sure to include our own encounter with the Sun Dragon which should identify the common purpose between us. Part of the reason for this change is my own reduction in capability. I currently lack my customary intellect and that would slow my response to any problem.

We’re just about holding together here and I can’t help but wonder if that is somehow degrading my decision making.

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