23. Moondozer

“Your trouble, Dr. Morgan,” said the man in the wheelchair, “is that you're on the wrong planet.”

“I can't help thinking,” retorted Morgan, looking pointedly at his visitor's life-support system, “that much the same may be said of you.”

The Vice-President (Investments) of Narodny Mars gave an appreciative chuckle.

“At least I'm here only for a week – then it's back to the Moon, and a civilised gravity. Oh, I can walk if I really have to: but I prefer otherwise.”

“If I may ask, why do you come to Earth at all?”

“I do so as little as possible, but sometimes one has to be on the spot. Contrary to general belief; you can't do everything by remotes. I'm sure you are aware of that.”

Morgan nodded; it was true enough. He thought of all the times when the texture of some material, the feel of rock or soil underfoot, the smell of a jungle, the sting of spray upon his face, had played a vital role in one of his projects. Some day, perhaps even these sensations could be transferred by electronics-indeed, it had already been done so crudely, on an experimental basis, and at enormous cost. But there was no substitute for reality; one should beware of imitations.

“If you've visited Earth especially to meet me,” Morgan replied, “I appreciate the honour. But if you're offering me a job on Mars, you're wasting your time. I'm enjoying my retirement, meeting friends and relatives I haven't seen for years, and I've no intention of starting a new career.”

“I find that surprising; after all, you're only 52. How do you propose to occupy your time?”

“Easily. I could spend the rest of my life on any one of a dozen projects. The ancient engineers – the Romans, the Greeks, the Incas – they've always fascinated me, and I've never had time to study them. I've been asked to write and deliver a Global University course on design science. There's a text-book I'm commissioned to write on advanced structures. I want to develop some ideas about the use of active elements to correct dynamic loads – winds, earthquakes, and so forth – I'm still consultant for General Tectonics. And I'm preparing a report on the administration of TCC.”

“At whose request? Not, I take it, Senator Collins'?”

“No,” said Morgan, with a grim smile. “I thought it would be – useful. And it helps to relieve my feelings.”

“I'm sure of it. But all these activities aren't really creative. Sooner or later they'll pall – like this beautiful Norwegian scenery. You'll grow tired of looking at lakes and fir trees, just as you'll grow tired of writing and talking. You are the sort of man who will never be really happy, Dr. Morgan, unless you are shaping your universe.”

Morgan did not reply. The prognosis was much too accurate for comfort.

“I suspect that you agree with me. What would you say if I told you that my Bank was seriously interested in the space elevator project?”

“I'd be sceptical. When I approached them, they said it was a fine idea, but they couldn't put any money into it at this stage. All available funds were needed for the development of Mars. It's the old story – we'll be glad to help you, when you don't need any help.”

“That was a year ago; now there have been some second thoughts. We'd like you to build the space elevator – but not on Earth. On Mars. Are you interested?”

“I might be. Go on.”

“Look at the advantages. Only a third of the gravity, so the forces involved are correspondingly smaller. The synchronous orbit is also closer – less than half the altitude here. So at the very start, the engineering problems are enormously reduced. Our people estimate that the Mars system would cost less than a tenth of the Terran one.”

“That's quite possible, though I'd have to check it.”

“And that's just the beginning. We have some fierce gales on Mars, despite our thin atmosphere – but mountains that get completely above them. Your Sri Kanda is only five kilometres high. We have Mons Pavonis – twenty-one kilometres, and exactly on the equator! Better still, there are no Martian monks with long-term leases sitting on the summit… And there's one other reason why Mars might have been designed for a space elevator. Deimos is only three thousand kilometres above the stationary orbit. So we already have a couple of million megatons sitting in exactly the right place for the anchor.”

“That will present some interesting problems in synchronisation, but I see what you mean. I'd like to meet the people who worked all this out.”

“You can't, in real time. They're all on Mars. You'll have to go there.”

“I'm tempted, but I still have a few other questions.”

“Go ahead.”

“Earth must have the elevator, for all the reasons you doubtless know. But it seems to me that Mars could manage without it. You have only a fraction of our space traffic, and a much smaller projected growth rate. Frankly, it doesn't make a great deal of sense to me.”

“I was wondering when you'd ask.”

“Well, I'm asking.”

“Have you heard of Project Eos?”

“I don't think so.”

“Eos – Greek for Dawn – the plan to rejuvenate Mars.”

“Oh, of course I know about that. It involves melting the polar caps, doesn't it?”

“Exactly. If we could thaw out all that water and CO2 ice, several things would happen. The atmospheric density would increase until men could work in the open without spacesuits; at a later stage, the air might even be made breathable. There would be running water, small seas – and, above all, vegetation – the beginnings of a carefully planned biota. In a couple of centuries, Mars could be another Garden of Eden. It's the only planet in the solar system we can transform with known technology: Venus may always be too hot.”

“And where does the elevator come into this?”

“We have to lift several million tons of equipment into orbit. The only practical way to heat up Mars is by solar mirrors, hundreds of kilometres across. And we'll need them permanently – first to melt the ice-caps, and later to maintain a comfortable temperature.”

“Couldn't you get all this material from your asteroid mines?”

“Some of it, of course. But the best mirrors for the job are made of sodium, and that's rare in space. We'll have to get it from the Tharsis salt-beds – right by the foothills of Pavonis, luckily enough.”

“And how long will all this take?”

“If there are no problems, the first stage could be complete in fifty years. Maybe by your hundredth birthday, which the actuaries say you have a thirty-nine percent chance of seeing.”

Morgan laughed.

“I admire people who do a thorough job of research.”

“We wouldn't survive on Mars unless we paid attention to detail.”

“Well, I'm favourably impressed, though I still have a great many reservations. The financing, for example -”

“That's my job, Dr. Morgan. I'm the banker. You're the engineer.”

“Correct, but you seem to know a good deal about engineering, and I've had to learn a lot of economics – often the hard way. Before I'd even consider getting involved in such a project, I should want a detailed budget breakdown -”

“Which can be provided -”

“– and that would just be the start. You may not realise that there's still a vast amount of research involved in half-a-dozen fields – mass production of the hyperfilament material, stability and control problems – I could go on all night.”

“That won't be necessary; our engineers have read all your reports. What they are proposing is a small-scale experiment that will settle many of the technical problems, and prove that the principle is sound -”

“There's no doubt about that.”

“I agree, but it's amazing what a difference a little practical demonstration can make. So this is what we would like you to do. Design the minimum possible system – just a wire with a payload of a few kilogrammes. Lower it from synchronous orbit to Earth – yes, Earth. If it works here, it will be easy on Mars. Then run some thing up it just to show that rockets are obsolete. The experiment will be relatively cheap, it will provide essential information and basic training – and, from our point of view, it will save years of argument. We can go to the Government of Earth, the Solar Fund, the other interplanetary banks – and just point to the demonstration.”