Solar Storms Read Free

funded.
    “I suppose you want to know why I asked for you,
Dr. Winston,” Tsui said, studying her.
    “Indeed,” she said, pulling her blonde hair back
into a ponytail instinctively. It was a nervous habit she had developed long
before she had decided she wanted to be a particle physicist.
    “What I am about to tell you is classified. This
information is considered level 10, and technically neither of you is authorized
to hear it, but unfortunately we don’t have time to get you through the proper
channels. If our intel is correct, it won’t much matter in a few days anyway.”
    Sophie glanced at Emanuel, whose dimples were
fading into a frown.
    “Two months ago, my team picked up some very odd sunspots.
Which, as you know, is not typical for the sun’s current cycle.”
    She cocked an eyebrow at him, her curiosity growing
by the second.
    “The last eleven-year cycle peaked and ended two
years ago. So theoretically the sun should not be very active right now.” He
paused to take a look at the ceiling. “Amy, please show the new team members
our discovery.”
    Above them the monitor glowed to life, the blue
screensaver fading into the red image of the sun. A waveform rippled across the
screen, like a patient’s heartbeat during an EKG. Only the wave wasn’t normal;
it was fluctuating rapidly. It took Sophie a few seconds to realize what she
was looking at.
    “The graphic isn’t real time, it’s been sped up to
illustrate the sun’s activity over the past month. As you can see, the ebb and
flow is not normal.”
    “Do you have any idea as to why?” Sophie asked.
    Tsui locked eyes with her. Even behind the thick
lenses, Sophie could see the strain in them. He knew something—something he
hadn’t told them yet.
    “That’s why we brought you here, Dr. Winston. I
read your thesis on solar flares nine years ago when you were seeking your PhD
from Princeton. Which, by the way,” he paused and looked quickly at Emanuel, “is
the reason you are here too, Dr. Rodriguez.”
    The biologist was caught off guard and froze, still
not sure why Tsui had requested him.
    “Your paper on the effect of solar weather on
animal migrations and behavior was fascinating. I suspect your advice will be of
great help if our projections turn out to be correct,” Tsui said, raising his
thin white eyebrows above his glasses.
    “Projections?” Sophie asked.
    “Amy, project image of active region 9897.”
    A red hologram of the sun shot out of the console in
the center of the room, and the knot returned in Sophie’s stomach. Visible even
to the naked eye was a dark patch covering a large portion of the sun’s northern
hemisphere. She could tell just by looking at it that it was at least a dozen
of times larger than the earth.
    “When was this image captured?” Sophie asked, her
normally calm voice tinged with nervousness.
    “Two months ago. Amy, fast-forward to present day,”
Tsui said.
    The hologram flickered as the imaging was sped up.
Slowly the sunspot expanded.
    Sophie gasped. It was the largest she’d ever
seen—larger even than AR9393, which had grown to fourteen times larger than earth
in 2001. The behemoth continued to expand until the hologram transitioned into
a solid yellow.
    “The storm has already produced several solar
flares and coronal mass ejections that have destroyed multiple satellites and
disrupted the international space station,” Tsui said, shuffling up to examine
the hologram.
    “How have news outlets not gotten hold of this?”
Emanuel asked.
    Tsui shook his head. “We all know President Bolton
heavily campaigned on the premise that climate change doesn’t exist. She has
also heavily denied the potential catastrophic effects of space weather,
claiming any mitigation funding is a waste of money.” He paused to take off his
glasses and rub his eyes. “Why do you think NTC has had to absorb virtually all
of NASA’s functions? Between Bolton and Congress, there is hardly any funding
left. Just