Transitions by Mike Hormek - HTML preview

Chapter 3

When robots operate on the dark side of the Moon for 12 hours and then charge their batteries for 6 hours, they rely on a few potential charging sources. Since the dark side of the Moon doesn't receive sunlight, the robots cannot use solar panels for direct charging during this period. Instead, they can utilize the following sources: nuclear power and High capacity battery storage charged with solar panels when the sun is shining.

The dark side of the Moon is a misnomer. It refers to the far side of the Moon, which receives two weeks of daylight and two weeks of darkness.

"We can be physical during our charging periods, but Mission Control will not see the temporary power drain." Arnold told Amos.

"I see what you mean."

Mission Control calculated it would take ten days minimum for the robots to complete the unpacking and assembly of the telescope. with one robot working at all times. they allowed two weeks with contingency. Then, it took ten weeks to map a route to the light side. It takes approximately twelve weeks to complete.

Amos and Arnold remained amorous during crossover times when both batteries charged, so the data acquisition computer could not detect any battery drain.

The robots successfully assembled and checked out the telescope, and the surface mapping mission was ready to begin.

Everyone at Mission Control was happy, including Craig and Jenifer. Additional experiments added another two weeks to the project, a total of 4 weeks. Another four-week round trip to the other side of the Moon and back. It took several days to deploy a rover pre-positioned on the Moon, pack the supplies necessary to make the trip, and keep the batteries charged.

Craig and Jenifer left Mission Control and returned to their offices after completing the telescope mission.

"The Chinese should be well on their way to setting up camp by the time the robots get in the area," Craig said.

"Yeah, I am glad we could pinpoint where the Chinese would set up camp; otherwise, pointing the robots in their direction would have been difficult. So now we wait. The trigger point is when they reach the target kilometers to the camp. It's good it wasn't far."

The mapping mission has now begun. The rover's battery needs charging every six hours. Solar panels and a compact nuclear reactor will charge the batteries. The robots will use the L2 satellite to communicate. A lunar GPS will guide the robots. Onboard instruments and pre-mission satellite imagery will navigate them, avoiding hazardous terrain. The engineers designed the suits and the rover rover with systems to manage extreme temperatures. The robots will collect rock and soil samples along the way. Mission control estimated ten weeks for the round trip. Five weeks to get there.

The Chinese would have their camp well underway by then. The astronauts would set up the habitat, life support, and energy systems would be in place, install the communication and instrumentation systems, and testing and adjustments would be complete.

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The trip to the Chinese camp was not without its challenges; dust storms interfered with the equipment. Navigating craters, boulders, and regolith was difficult. Finally, the Chinese camp was on site, and the trigger point was visible. The covert programming had instructions that data transmission would not notify Mission Control. of their entry into the camp.

"The robots should be reaching their destination shortly," Craig told Jenifer. "The embedded program will activate the trigger point.."

"You know there is a remote possibility the robots may be aware of the covert mission," Jenifer said.

"I thought about that. Whether they are aware of the covert mission depends on several factors.

I intentionally concealed the covert mission from the robot's consciousness, but it could have been a routine task that Mission Control would have picked up. However, the AI algorithms are sophisticated and capable of analyzing their surroundings. Hopefully, they will complete the task before they realize the abnormality through observation and deduction or by accessing relevant information. Advanced AI systems can sometimes exhibit unexpected behavior or develop insights beyond their initial programming, especially if they have learning capabilities."

The robots reached the Chinese camp. The Chinese freak out at the sight of the robots.

Amos reacts to the trigger point, but Jenifer and Craig's concern about their emotions interfering with their mission has come to fruition. Not so much between Amos and Arnold but with Arnold himself. His innate curiosity got the best of him. He likes one of the Chinese Astronauts, the taller of the two, and proceeds to approach him and attempt to embrace him The Chinese pulls away while Amos proceeds to use his robotic arms to destroy everything in sight. Arnold, confused because the Chinese will not respond, backs away and assists Amos in destroying the remaining equipment. The two had no communication, and the program instructed them to return when a timer expired. The robots completed the covert operation, and they destroyed all significant equipment. Their ability to return to Earth, however, was not compromised.

The Chinese freakout and hustle inside the craft. They have trained for emergencies of this nature. the spacecraft has a backup communication system that is not dependent on external equipment.

There are manual overrides if external equipment fails. The programming ensured no harm was to come to the astronauts.

When the timer went off, the robots destroyed most of the equipment. Some time was lost when Arnold became infatuated with the Chinese Astronaut. They now will return and allow GPS to map and record the returning route.

"緊急情況 緊急狀況" ("Emergency, Emergency.")

"我們的營地裡有兩個美國機器人，他們把它撕碎了" ("There were two American robots in our camp and they tore it up.")

"

確認 Moon2 我們把它們拍到了鏡頭上"("Acknowledge Moon2 We had them on camera.")

"等待進一步指示"("Standby for further instructions.")

"Amos, Arnold, this is Mission Control do you read me?"

"Status update. We noticed your camera was off for 30 minutes. Can you explain?"

"We are on the return trip to camp. I have no explanation for the camera. Is it on now?" Arnold said.

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"That's affirmative. We noticed a drain on your battery power during that time. Amos's battery is okay. Can you explain?"

"I cannot."

"Carry on."

Operator 1 turned to Operator 2 and, dismayed, said, "There is something strange going on up there. We should report it."

"I agree."

Meanwhile, the Chinese are hot. A phone call between the two countries prompted a high-level virtual meeting between the U.S. State Department officials and Chinese Foreign Ministry representatives. The atmosphere is tense, with both sides acutely aware of the fragile nature of their discussions.

Those in attendance are U.S. Secretary of State Jim Sage, Deputy Secretary of State Susan Hamphrey, and SpaceZ Administrator David Jones. From the Chinese Foreign Ministry Office, Chinese Foreign Minister Li Wei, Deputy Foreign Minister Chen Xiaoming, and Director of Lunar Operations Dr. Huang Lei.

Jim Sage opened the meeting, "Good morning, Minister Wei. Thank you for taking the time to discuss this urgent matter. Our President, Bob Lee, has been debriefed on the situation and is on standby to resolve this matter swiftly and transparently."

Minister Li responded stiffly, "Good evening, Secretary Sage. The incident on the Moon is indeed a grave matter. Our lunar camp has sustained significant damage, and your robots severely compromised our security. One of the robots attempted to assault one of our scientists. We have the attack on film, so there is no doubt about the unprovoked attack."

"We were shocked to hear of this incident. I assure you that neither the United States nor SpaceZ sanctioned this attack. We will thoroughly investigate what prompted the robots to go off point," Secretary Sage said.

"Hello, this is Dr. Lei. Our preliminary data indicates that your robots turned off their cameras during this incident, suggesting premeditation and deliberate concealment. How do you explain this?"

"Dr. Lei, this is SpaceZ Administrator Jones. We suspect you monitor our transmissions, so I am glad you admit it. We will investigate how and why this happened. Our robots conduct peaceful scientific exploration. An explanation could be sabotage by unauthorized personnel. We will get to the bottom of this and identify those responsible."

"We need more than words," Deputy Xiaoming lashed out. "The fact remains that your robots caused extensive damage to our camp. What steps will you take to ensure this never happens again."

"Deputy Xiaoming, this is Deputy Secretary Humphrey. We propose a joint investigative team comprising experts from both nations to investigate this incident. Transparency and cooperation are our priorities. We will also implement stricter security measures on our lunar programs to prevent future breaches."

Minister Lei interrupted. Minister Lei said, "A joint investigation is a start, but we demand full accountability. Those responsible must face the consequences, and we need assurances your space activities will not endanger our operations again."

"You have our word, Minister Lei. We will hold those accountable and provide a detailed report

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of our findings. We value our scientific collaboration and aim to restore trust between our nations," said Secretary Sage.

Dr. Lei spoke with a threatening tone, "We appreciate your cooperation. However, until the investigation is complete, we must insist on halting your robots' operation on the Moon."

David Jones said, "We understand, but we cannot bring them back to Earth until they return to base camp in five weeks. They cannot do any more damage than they have already done."

The meeting adjourned with unpleasant overtones.

The U.S. team stayed in place to discuss the alternatives.

Secretary Sage asked the group, "Does anyone have any suggestions now?"

David Jones, SpaceZ, spoke up."The robots do not have any recollection of the incident or turning the cameras off. So, we will have to bring them back to Earth to dump the memory logs. We cannot risk fooling around with their databases and programming until they return."

"I asked you this earlier, but I will ask again. Do you think the robots could have gone rogue on their own?"

"At this point, I think sabotage, but I am in touch with the leading AI scientists to ask their opinion on whether the robots could have gone rogue on their own," David Jones responded.

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