The Edge | Episode 11 | Press

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Shah was moments away from the command center when King’s voice rang over the comm.

“Are you finished in the garden? It’s almost time for our press conference!”

Shah didn’t bother responding.

Not that it was going to be much of a press conference. Being about five light hours away from Earth precluded any kind of real conversation. Instead of a traditional press conference, they had been supplied with a number of questions, from reputable sources, which they would have to answer in detail after the ceremony, and the speeches.

He wasn’t looking forward to this at all, considering it meant several hours of pontificating from King. But the science came first, so he would put up with the annoyance and keep his mouth shut. If he could stand it. And except for when he had questions to answer, of course.

He floated up towards the command center, and King’s voice echoed out from Shah’s comm.

“You know, my boy, you really are--”

The door opened for him.

“I’m here, Professor.”

“Ah, very good. Just in the nick of time.”

“Transmission scheduled to begin in two minutes. Launch systems are ready.” The computer voice had again reverted to the original voice.

“Decided to play it safe?”

“What’s that?”

“With the voice.”

“Ah, well, my recent choices, ah, wouldn’t have fit the solemnity and import of today’s event, would they?”

A fictional orphan. A former US President. A flying nanny. A singing nun. A hero of the War. A green witch. The Empress in Star Empire. “I completely agree.” The rest of what he wanted to say was better left unsaid.

The speech that King had prepared for himself hung on a screen in front of him, next to the camera that would record his performance. Shah’s own speech was shorter. King’s role was obviously far more important than his own.

He eyed the text on his own screen, next to his own camera. He knew his place, he supposed. If only he could not let the old fool get to him.

“Transmission scheduled to begin in one minute. Systems are normal.” The reassurance was completely unnecessary. They could both see the time slipping by. What else were they doing but sitting in cool silence and watching the seconds pass?

“Transmission scheduled to begin in ten seconds.”

“Let’s keep this light and cordial, my boy,” King said.

“Take your own advice.” He forced a smile onto his face just as the transmission began. It was a small victory, but he relished it.

They would have an audience in five hours, but there would be a full minute of calibrations and checks before the official broadcast started. He glanced over at the Professor.

The main screen was segmented into eight different feeds. Four of them showed external angles of Galileo and the darkness beyond. One showed the hatch where the probes would launch from, and the first probe, ready to be launched. The two remaining segments showed their faces. He could see his own expression was a little too tense, and tried to calm himself by focusing on his breathing. And he noticed something else too. Was the old man nervous?

He would have no idea if his face was being broadcast at any given moment, but he knew that their facial expressions and body language would be scrutinized every moment by Control. The video reports and messages they had sent so far would have been scrutinized as well, but this was the first time the two of them were going to be seen together, in the same place, and at the same time.

The seconds marched on.

“Broadcast scheduled to begin in ten seconds.”

King smiled as the final seconds evaporated.

When the audience would finally be watching, King’s smile broadened into a more genuine-seeming grandfatherly expression. “Hello, friends, and welcome to Galileo.”

The word “friends” seemed like wishful thinking. Many who were watching were eager for drama or danger, or for an excuse to move funding to a more populist project of one kind or another. Few of those watching were friends.

“I am Professor Alexander King, and this is Dr. Reza Shah,”—to which Shah nodded, and smiled, and offered a light wave—“and together we have worked for twenty seven years, and several months, to bring this project, and ourselves, to the edge of the Solar System. Many of you have spoken to us on our long journey, and many of you have seen our images of Saturn and Neptune over recent months. Thank you for all your support and well wishes.

“Today, in just a few moments, this project will begin in earnest, with the launch of the first probe of the King-Shah Array, designated 0001, followed by a second and third probe. We’ll then proceed with a live demonstration of our project’s capabilities. Dr. Shah?”

“Thank you, Professor, and hello everyone. Each probe of the Shah-King Array is a sophisticated computer, a set of sensors in various wavelengths and energies, as well as a traditional kind of space-based telescope. Each probe will therefore have various observational capabilities. Working alone, each probe is nothing special. But each probe is designed to work in concert with the other probes, and with Galileo. Three probes, far apart from each other in space, can still work together and contribute to our knowledge of interstellar space in a ground-breaking way.

“With probes working together as an array we can make the same observations as if we had a single telescope as wide as the probes’ total separation distance. Obviously we can’t build a single telescope the size of the whole Solar System in a single piece, but by using probes scattered around the orbit of Galileo, out here beyond Neptune, we can get the same benefit. We should be able to see nearby stars in unprecedented detail, and see the whole galaxy in more detail than ever before. Professor?”

*

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