Space Hoax

6 BAIKONUR COSMODROME

The officer’s footsteps clicked rhythmically down the concrete corridor inside the crusty old building, stationed within the compounds of Russia’s famous launch facility. Peter followed closely behind as he wiped the sweat off his brow. Due to the lack of air conditioning, he figured he was walking in one of the complex’s original sixty-year-old buildings. Though a light late morning breeze flowed through the many opened widows, it was of little help cooling him off. The passageway felt as hot as the ninety-degree-plus temperature outside.

Hustling to keep up with the focused soldier, Peter did a final review of the file given to him by Gavin. Peter’s sweaty fingers kept smearing ink as he turned the pages. He hoped this last minute review would prepare him for the briefing he was about to walk into. It was his understanding that after this meeting he would suit up and board the Soyuz for liftoff later this afternoon. Things were happening quickly.

This was Peter’s first visit to the Baikonur Cosmodrome, where many historic Russian space flights had launched, including Sputnik and the world’s first manned space flight. He was amazed he was back in south-central Asia so soon after escaping the region. Russia’s launch complex was in the desert steppe of Kazakhstan, just south of Russia, bordering China and Kyrgyzstan. He couldn’t help but think of Ying on the flight over, hoping the brave young woman was okay. Though he paved the way for her to stay a couple of months at the base, she was determined to eventually sneak back into China with her children to reunite with her family and husband.

Peter was able to get in a solid six hours of sleep on the plane. He had no idea how much rest he would be able to get over the next forty-eight. Concentrating on the paperwork, Peter almost walked into the soldier slowing down while approaching a closed door. The officer did a hard knock before opening it and stepping back, motioning for Peter to enter. Peter did a slight nod as a welcome blast of cool air shot out of the doorway, hitting him square in the face. He charged into the large chilled meeting room expecting to see a handful of FKA officials, but instead was surprised to see only one man wearing a business suit sitting on the other side of a long conference table. A huge grin shot across Peter’s face when he realized it was his old friend, Dmitri.

Peter bellowed, “I was hoping to see you.”

Without saying a word, Dmitri rose and quickly walked around the table. Just before approaching, he extended his arms like an eagle in flight as he swooped in to give Peter a hug. Peter placed the file on the table before putting out his arms to greet his friend. Peter was caught off guard by Dmitri’s strong bear hug, practically lifting Peter off the ground. “Dear friend, I’m so happy you survived.”

Peter gave his buddy a couple solid pats on the back before pulling away. “Thanks, but I’m sorry your dad didn’t.” Peter cleared the lump in his throat. “But at least he’s with your mom now.”

Dmitri lowered his eyes. “True and he fulfilled his dream of reaching the moon, thanks to you.” Dmitri straightened up. “Have a seat. We’ll be joined by the launch and mission teams shortly.”

After picking up his file, Peter walked over to the chair across from Dmitri. “I’m happy to see you here. I wondered if you would be a part of this operation.”

A smile crossed Dmitri’s face as he took his seat. “Not only am I a part of it, I’m the one who recommended you for this rescue. Believe it or not, after one space flight, you are now one of the world’s most experienced astronauts, having flown in the Soyuz, the Shenzhou, the Galileo and the International Space Station. There’s no man more qualified to handle this rescue.”

Peter was the only man to have flown in all the current manned spacecraft. “Wow, you’re right. I never thought of it that way.”

Dmitri motioned for Peter to sit as he settled himself back in his chair. “Plus, throw in the fact that you’ve done a couple of spacewalks and flown to the moon, which, other than the Chinese, hasn’t been done in over forty years. I’d say you have quite a resume.”

Peter swelled with pride as he took a seat.

Dmitri continued, “Congratulations, by the way.”

Peter tilted his head. “For what?”

Dmitri grinned. “Winning our bet.” He started to dig into his pocket. “So how much do I owe you?”

Peter laughed. They were kids when they made a bet related to space travel, though neither remembered exactly what it was. Dmitri was being nice in conceding the bet was about getting to the moon first. “I think a ruble. Actually the bet was probably who would walk on the moon first. So why don’t you hold off paying me.”

Dmitri’s empty hand came out of his pocket. “Tell you what—let’s make it double or nothing on who walks on the moon first?”

“Deal.”

“I talked to Anya late last night. She told me you recommended she touch base with me.”

Peter perked up. “I did. What did you tell her?”

“Nothing about the mission, but I did tell her to catch the next flight to Moscow. She should arrive early tomorrow morning. I’ll do what I can to get her into the control room. Of course, you’re going to be a busy man.”

Peter’s shoulders relaxed. “Good. It was tough leaving her yesterday morning. I knew you’d take care of her.”

“Don’t worry about her. You need to worry about saving those men.”

Peter’s body finally started to cool down, thanks to the two window air conditioners running full blast. “So when do we launch?”

“In a little over five hours. Launch is scheduled at 2:48 this afternoon. Aleksandr Chumakov will be the cosmonaut flying you up. He’s currently being checked out in medical and should join us any minute.”

Aleksandr was probably one of Russia’s most experienced cosmonauts, having already flown four missions. “Great. I know he’s one of your best. So how is the tourist handling all of this?”

Dmitri shook his head. “Not good. He had to be sedated. He was getting hysterical and using up all their oxygen.”

“How in the world did he pass training?”

“Good question. It was my understanding he successfully accomplished everything thrown at him.”

“Who is he, anyway?”

“Carlos Calma, son of Jose Calma, the famous business tycoon.”

Shaking his head, Peter opened his file. He had read about the flashy playboy. “SID informed me this will be a secret mission. How in the world can you keep a launch secret?”

“We can’t. After we launch, we’ll tell the media its purpose is to replace the Soyuz you stole to the moon, informing them the cosmonauts flying will immediately return in the Galileo, ensuring the station has reliable escape pods.”

“Smart.”

“Of course, we eventually will have to come up with a story on why the tourist didn’t make it to the space station.”

Peter arched an eyebrow. “Hey, you Russians will come up with something.”

Dmitri smiled. “Let’s worry about the rescue first.” He leaned in. “Unfortunately, because of the rush, you’ll miss out on many of our prelaunch traditions.”

Peter chuckled as he remembered peeing on the van tire with Viktor. “I experienced some of those, thanks to your dad.” He raised his hand. “You need a checklist just to keep track of them all.”

“We do have a lot. But there is one I didn’t want you to miss.” Dmitri pulled the chair out next to him and lifted an old tattered, leather-bound book. He carefully slid it across the table. “Since you will now be flying as a cosmonaut, you should sign the log all cosmonauts sign before their mission.” Dmitri pulled out a pen from his pocket and slid it to Peter.

Peter slowly moved his finger along the edge of the historical book. “I’m very aware of this tradition, and am honored to sign.” His note needed to be directed to Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space. He carefully opened the fragile book. He slowly flipped through the pages, scanning a few entries.

Dmitri had a mischievous grin as he pointed to the book. “Go ahead and turn to the last page.”

Peter flipped to the final page of entries. A chill ran through his body when he saw the top note. He slowly rubbed his finger over the dried ink as he read it to himself.

I fly as a cosmonaut in honor of a friend and ask for your guidance. See you and Maria soon. Viktor Alexandrov.

A twinge of sadness shot through Peter, knowing Viktor signed this before going on their flight. He was proud to see that Viktor honored Peter’s father. “Your dad never told me about this. You can see our fathers were close.”

“Just like we are.”

Peter smiled. “Yes, like us.” He picked up the pen and gently rolled it between two fingers. Since the page Viktor signed was filled with the signings of the men on the current mission, he needed to write on the next empty page, directly across from his old partner’s quote. He flipped the pen over and began to write with certainty.

I am honored to sign next to such a courageous and superior cosmonaut, whom I was lucky to fly with. I ask you and Viktor for your guidance and blessing. Peter Novak

Peter admired his words for a second before sliding the book back to Dmitri.

Dmitri studied the entry. “Very nice.” He gently closed the book and put it to the side. His demeanor changed and his voice was suffused with a sense of urgency. “Now we need to get down to business. So do you have any questions?”

Peter turned to a certain page in his file. Since the cosmonauts would be breathing a nitrogen/oxygen mixture in the Soyuz, he had some worries. “I’m concerned about decompression sickness setting in with the cosmonauts during the transfer.”

“We’re concerned too. As you have read, the pressure in their flight suits needs to be reduced to 3.9 psi to permit three men in suits to fit into the Orbital Module and allow for the flexibility to move around and handle the rescue. We figure they have about forty minutes at this lower pressure before decompression sickness kicks in. Of course, the clock starts when they close their visors and start depressurizing the spacecraft, which should take eighteen minutes before their hatch is open. Once safely in your spacecraft, they can immediately hook up to the oxygen units provided by the ISS to increase their pressure. The order you will save them is flight engineer, tourist, and then the commander. We don’t want Carlos by himself.”

Peter remembered the difficulties of moving in space. Everything seems to happen in slow motion. “That will be tough, transferring them one at a time.” He figured even if everything went smoothly, it would be tight to transfer all three separately in less than twenty-two minutes, and if time ran out, the commander would be the one to experience the sickness.

Dmitri squinted hard as he took a deep breath. “We have no choice. Unfortunately, that will not be your only time constraint. Each man will stay hooked up to the Soyuz’s air supply until their turn to leave. When they disconnect, their only air will be what’s remaining in their suit. Depending on how calm they are, we estimate this to be in the range of six to eight minutes.”

Peter put a hand around his chin and squeezed. “Wow, transfer each in six minutes.” That would be a challenge. “I’ll rely on the commander to keep me abreast of the time.”

Dmitri shook his head. “Sorry, there was not enough time to modify the Skylab suit’s connections to allow you to hook up our snoopy cap. You will not be able to communicate with the men.”

Peter straightened up in his chair. “Will I be able to communicate with mission control?”

Dmitri answered in a matter of fact tone. “No, not during the rescue.”

The mission was getting trickier. “What about the oxygen supply in my suit?”

“There were two small oxygen packs supplied by NASA on the plane you arrived in. These, along with your spacesuit, are being prepared as we speak. These packs attach to your leg. Both you and Alex will do a decompression and prebreathe pure oxygen for an hour before docking with the ISS, using the ship’s oxygen supply by means of a strapped on air mask. You will use one of the small oxygen packs for your transfer to the ISS and the other for the rescue. We figure each should give you about sixty minutes of oxygen. You should have as much as thirty minutes left over in the first pack that can be stored in Galileo and used if needed. You will be hooked up to Galileo’s pure oxygen supply when flying over to the damaged spacecraft.”

“Is the spacecraft spinning?” Peter knew any explosion would start a spacecraft rotating in some gyration, adding to the complexities of saving the men.

“No. We were able to stabilize the craft.”

“Good. Dealing with a tumbling Soyuz would have been a trick. How about the SAFER?”

“Two ISS astronauts should be doing a spacewalk now, attaching it on the outside of the Galileo. You will be able—”

Dmitri was interrupted by a hard knock at the door. Peter turned around to see the door swing open and reveal a middle-aged Russian in a blue FKA jump suit standing there. The reflected sunlight in the hall highlighted the man’s sun damaged face outlined by sloppily groomed salt and pepper hair with a bushy mustache sitting on a grin. The short man entered and went directly to Peter, extending his hand. “Hello, Peter.”

Peter stood. Chumakov written on the man’s pocket confirmed this was his pilot. Peter firmly grabbed the man’s hand. “Hello, Aleksandr.”

“Call me Alex.” While still holding his hand, Alex gave him a solid pat on the arm. “It is honor to fly with you.”

Peter bowed his head slightly. “Thank you, but the honor is all mine. I know you are one of FKA’s best.”

Alex smiled as he let go of Peter’s hand. “I know Viktor a long time. You two do special mission together, flying Soyuz to moon.”

With his thick Russian accent, Alex reminded Peter of Viktor. “I was honored to fly with Viktor, and I was very impressed with the Soyuz.”

Dmitri interjected. “Gentlemen, have a seat.” As the two sat, he continued. “Alex, how did your medical check go?”

“All fine. I live another fifty years. Are we still on schedule?”

“Yes.” Dmitri did not take his gaze off Alex. “Due to the rush of this mission, and the fact Peter doesn’t speak Russian, Capcom will speak English.”

A surprised look flashed on Alex’s face. All past Soyuz missions launched from Baikonur had been in their native language. Peter glanced down at his watch. He estimated the stranded cosmonauts had a little less than twenty-six hours of time left. He interjected. “When should we arrive at the space station?”

“In order to get you two to the ISS as soon as possible, Alex will fly into a higher orbit and brake, allowing the station to catch you. Though this is the method we plan on using next year, it’s still an undeveloped technique. We calculate it will take about six hours.”

Peter was impressed at the short duration.

A slight smirk appeared on Dmitri’s face. “And this time Boris will be expecting you.”

Peter smiled, remembering the harsh welcome he had received from the ISS commander on his last mission. He started rolling Dmitri’s pen between his fingers. “How much time do you estimate we’ll have after we arrive at the station to pull off the rescue?”

“After undocking the Galileo, if all goes according to plan, you’ll have about seven hours to rescue the men.”

“Any idea how long before I rendezvous with them?”

“We estimate about four hours.”

“Damn, that’s cutting it close.”

“Yes. Therefore, we cannot afford any mistakes. Everything must go as planned.”

Alex interjected with confidence. “Not worry. We carry out mission as plan.”

Peter smiled as he looked at Alex. He was sounding more and more like Viktor.

THE SUIT TECHNICIAN finished attaching Peter’s gloves to his spacesuit and spoke with a slight Russian accent. “How feel?”

Peter moved his hands around. Though the gloves were a little roomy, he was satisfied they wouldn’t cause a problem. “They’re fine.”

“Before put helmet on and pressure test suit, please walk around, let’s see all okay.”

Peter nodded and started to get up out of the chair. Seeing he was struggling, the suit technician reached down and helped him up. Once standing, Peter first started moving his arms around. He then rotated his body from side to side. He felt like the robot from Lost In Space as he continued moving his arms. “Danger, danger, Will Robinson.”

The suit tech gave him a questioning look. “Be there a problem?”

Peter smiled. He had to remind himself he was with the Russians. “Sorry, everything’s fine. Just an old American television show.”

Peter was expecting a heavy, bulky suit, but was amazed as he started to walk around. For a forty-year-old design, the suit was surprisingly light. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a distant, familiar image. He turned to see a full-length mirror about twenty feet away. Chills ran down his body as he stared. The Skylab suit was basically the same as Apollo’s. It was as if he was looking back in time at his dad. How do I look, Dad? At this distance, he was unable to read the mission patch or name, but there was no mistaking the big American flag on his arm. The stars and stripes stood out proudly on the white spacesuit. A sense of pride came over him as he walked toward the mirror. Soon he was able to read Robinson. His smile widened when he saw the triangular light blue mission patch with its big number three plastered off center signifying they were the third and final crew to visit the Skylab space station. He remembered his dad teasing Dusty, insisting they should have put the number four since it was actually the fourth rocket in the Skylab program. The first rocket was the massive Saturn V that put the unmanned station into space. Three smaller Saturn 1B rockets followed with the crews. Some of the press initially labeled those rockets as two, three and four, causing confusion over the correct designation for years.

“How she feel?”

Peter turned. “Oh, feels great.”

The technician pointed back to his seat. “Good. Time we pressure test it.”

As they started back, Dmitri entered the room and came right toward them. Dmitri’s eyes widened as he approached. “Wow, you look just like your dad.”

Peter stopped. “I know, I thought the same thing.”

Dmitri shook his head. “Amazing. So how does it feel?”

“Great. Fits perfect.”

“Good.” Dmitri began to reach into his pocket. “I have something for you.” He pulled out a picture.

Peter opened his gloved hand to receive it. Dmitri placed a picture of Anya in the center.

“She asked me to give this to you. She doesn’t want you to forget her.”

No way was Peter going to forget the love of his life. He gazed at the picture. Anya’s beautiful face was outlined by her gorgeous jet-black hair, which flowed over a formal purple dress.

“It was taken at my wedding. I had it on my desk.” Dmitri motioned to the picture. “I had Velcro put on the back.”

Peter was happy to have her along for the ride.