darknovel Chapter 301 A "Surprise" from Deep Space
Chapter 301 A "Surprise" from Deep Space
Beijing, National Space Center, Deep Space Monitoring Department.
Inside the enormous circular hall, hundreds of top scientists and technicians were busily working at their respective posts. Directly in front of them, a giant screen occupying an entire wall displayed in real time massive amounts of data transmitted from the FAST radio telescope and observatories deployed around the world.
This is China's "eyes in the sky," responsible for monitoring the seemingly peaceful but actually dangerous outer space beyond Earth day and night.
"Report! Gravitational parameters are normal in region A3."
"Report! The 'Xuntian' satellite is in stable orbit and data transmission is normal."
"Report! New discoveries have been made in pulsar observations in the Sagittarius direction..."
Reports came one after another, and the entire hall was immersed in an efficient and rigorous working atmosphere.
Academician Chen Qiming, the person in charge, is an elderly man in his sixties with gray hair but vigorous spirit. He is holding a cup of strong tea and reviewing various key data in front of his control panel.
Since China entered the "era of universal cultivation," those of them working in aerospace have actually faced even greater pressure. Minister Li Zhenguo personally ordered that the early warning level for deep space monitoring be raised to the highest level ever.
In Minister Li's words, "We must now guard not only against the jackals on the ground, but also be wary of the hungry tigers from the sky, which we do not yet know about!"
Chen Qiming wholeheartedly agreed. He had also seen the horrific footage of Area 51 that had been broadcast globally. The mountain-like biological warship and the overwhelming swarms of insects completely overturned his understanding of the universe as a scientist.
The universe is not all gentle and kind. Perhaps, the dark forest is the truth.
"Beep beep beep—!"
A sudden, urgent alarm blared in the lobby. The shrill sound shattered the silence instantly.
Everyone stopped what they were doing, looked up sharply, and stared at the source of the sound.
It is the terminal of the "Asteroid Impact Risk Warning System" located in the center of the hall.
On the screen, a glaring red alarm box was flashing wildly.
"What's going on?" Chen Qiming's expression changed, he slammed the teacup on the table and strode over.
A young researcher in charge of the system stared intently at the screen, his forehead beaded with sweat. His fingers flew across the keyboard, as if repeatedly confirming something.
"Xiao Liu! What's going on!" Chen Qiming shouted in a deep voice.
"Academician Chen... Academician Chen..." The researcher named Xiao Liu's voice trembled. "The system... the system has detected that in the asteroid belt, there is... there is an asteroid codenamed 'CE-279' that has suddenly deviated from its original orbit!"
"Derailment?" Chen Qiming frowned. "Gravitational perturbation? Or observational error? Conduct a second calculation immediately!"
In the vast asteroid belt, there are millions of asteroids. Due to various complex gravitational forces, it is normal for their orbits to occasionally deviate.
"No...no!" Xiao Liu's voice carried an undisguised fear. "Its trajectory wasn't deviated! It was...it changed! It...it seemed like it was precisely 'pushed'!"
"What?"
Chen Qiming's heart skipped a beat.
"Its speed increased by twelve percent in just three minutes! And it's a targeted acceleration! Its new orbit... its new orbit, according to our preliminary calculations... its target is... directly towards Earth!"
boom!
These words were like a thunderclap, exploding throughout the entire monitoring hall!
Everyone who heard it was stunned.
Pointing directly at Earth?
Targeted acceleration?
How is this possible?!
"Nonsense!" Chen Qiming's first reaction was disbelief. "What do you mean by being 'pushed'? Have you been reading too many science fiction novels? Immediately, mobilize all available resources to conduct a comprehensive review of 'CE-279'! I need the most accurate data!"
"yes!"
The entire space center instantly sprang into operation at high speed.
One order after another was issued swiftly.
The giant cauldron of "Sky Eye" began to slowly rotate, aligning itself with the area of the sky where "CE-279" was located.
Several deep-space exploration satellites in orbit also adjusted their attitudes, locking their lenses onto that distant and tiny point of light.
Five minutes later.
The first set of data for review has been sent back.
Looking at the precisely calculated, bright red predicted trajectory line on the screen, Chen Qiming's hand began to tremble uncontrollably.
Xiao Liu is right.
That asteroid really looked like an intercontinental ballistic missile with an engine, hurtling straight toward Earth in a manner that completely defied the laws of celestial motion!
"What is its diameter...?" Chen Qiming's voice was extremely hoarse.
"According to the latest spectral analysis and photometric calculations... its irregular diameter is approximately... between forty-five and fifty-five kilometers..." Xiao Liu read out this number with difficulty, a number that even he found suffocating.
Forty-five to fifty-five kilometers!
The entire monitoring hall fell into a deathly silence.
Everyone knows what this number means.
Sixty-five million years ago, the asteroid that caused the extinction of the dinosaurs was only about ten kilometers in diameter.
And this one in front of us is five times its size!
Once it actually hits Earth...
That will be, no, a disaster.
That will be the end of the world.
It was a complete, global mass extinction!
"Estimated... estimated impact time?" Chen Qiming gripped the control panel, feeling his legs go weak.
"Based on its current accelerating trend... it is expected to enter Earth's gravitational capture range in... seventy-two hours. Ninety-six hours later... it will impact the Earth's surface."
"Impact point...where is the impact point?"
"Currently, it's impossible to calculate precisely. However, based on orbital inclination analysis... it's highly likely to fall in the Northern Hemisphere."
Northern Hemisphere……
Chen Qiming's vision went black, and he almost collapsed to the ground.
He knew he had to report this news immediately.
He picked up the red, highest-encryption phone on the table, his hands trembling.
On the other end of the phone was the No. 1 command center.
Connected to it is Li Zhenguo's desk.
"Is...is...is this Minister Li?" Chen Qiming's voice was hoarse and barely audible.
"I am Chen Qiming... from the National Space Center..."
"We...we have...a huge, terrible piece of news..."
……
Meanwhile, at Cheyenne Mountain military base in Colorado, USA.
In the underground command center of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, an alarm sounded, even more piercing than the one from China.
"General! General! 'Eye of God' has detected an abnormal target!"
An officer in charge of space monitoring scrambled into the four-star general's temporary office.
"What abnormal target? What are the Russians up to now?" The four-star general, who was studying the data on "Atlantis," looked up with displeasure.
"No! It's not Russian! It's...it's an asteroid!" The officer's voice was filled with extreme panic.
"An asteroid codenamed 'CE-279'! It...it's coming straight for us! My God! It's coming straight for us!"
"It's too big! Too fast! We simply can't stop it!"
"General! This...this is...a punishment from God?!"
The four-star general was stunned.
He strode out of the office and into the command center.
When he saw on the big screen the enormous asteroid model, radiating an ominous red light, simulated by a supercomputer, and the death trajectory that pointed directly at the North American continent.
His face, which had just been full of high spirits, instantly lost all color.
He remembered what the Chinese chef had said.
"A major test that will affect everyone is coming soon."
original……
Is this the big test?