Sorry it's taken SOOOO long to get this back into the works, but as you know my health is not great, and I only have so much energy to go around. For the last several years, I have been spending a good deal of that energy working on a web-based TV show, STAR TREK: PHASE II (www dot startreknewvoyages dot com) as both a visual effects artist AND an actor. You'll see me in the role of the Klingon professor K'SIA in the upcoming episode KITUMBA, and you can see my effects in the current episode BLOOD AND FIRE ( I did the Transporter effects, and the red giant and white dwarf stars that are important plot points.)
Also, my writing muse had taken a long vacation somewhere where I couldn't find it, as the woman I've loved for thirty years passed away suddenly and painfully last summer, so both intellectually and emotionally I had nothing to give. Hopefully, I can do more in the next few months. However, this June, I'll be back at STAR TREK, so it may still be sporadic.
It was the culmination of several feverish months of planning, which began with theorizing as to exactly how they would pull-off the project on a technical level, a legal level, and a political level. That last concern was mostly to address public perception, which could prove to be very touchy if it wasn't handled just right.
It had begun with conceptualizing the entire operation to begin with. Second were the technical challenges, and third came the legal and political ramifications involved. Additionally, the journalistic aspect had to be planned and involved from the very beginning.
"You're gonna need to procure a used External Tank from the Shuttle," stated Jack Medaris sitting at his desk in the "bonus room" of his house, which Jack used as an office. Sitting across from Jack was Superman, filling the average-sized guest chair, his cape spilling off to one side. Anybody else would have looked ridiculous sitting there like that.
"How'm I gonna do that, short of stealing one?" the Caped Hero responded, curiosity causing his brow to furrow. Or maybe it was a dry sense of humor; Jack couldn't decide.
"Well, you might actually have to steal it. Technically, under the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, nations retain 'jurisdiction and control' over their spacecraft even when they are inoperable; so a salvage operator wouldn't be able to take title or stake a claim for recovering a defunct craft as is done on Earth under the traditional maritime salvage rules," Jack supplied. (1)
"And that takes us right back to NASA," Superman sighed.
"Correct. However, considering that we're coming up on the last missions of the Shuttle anyway, and considering the fact that NASA is just as strapped for cash as ever, I'll bet we could work out a deal to purchase one!" Jack finished with a smile.
"How much would that cost?" the Kryptonian asked with mock horror.
"I don't know what NASA would charge for the rights to obtain and scrap a tank. I do know that the newer Super Lightweight Tanks are more expensive to begin with. Something around 5 to 7 million dollars each. But still, they do only get used once; they break up over the Indian Ocean after being jettisoned. So, figure it this way: from a negotiating standpoint, any money NASA gets for one is gravy. The hardest part is gonna be reassuring the Feds that we aren't trying to build a bomb," Jack mused.
"I don't think telling them we're using it to build an experimental spacecraft for me and my family is gonna fly too well with the government, either," Superman retorted, a smile softening the words.
"Well, at some point it will come out, what you're doing," Jack advised. "My feeling is that you should be ready to embrace it. You'll have no choice but to learn to live with it."
"That's part of why this is so perfect: Penny High Eagle is one of the most well-known journalists since Dan Rather. She and Lois, together, can create a flow of information that'll be effective in tiding-over the clamoring hordes while at the same time controlling just what information is out there to begin with," Kal-El finished. He chuckled ruefully. "Man, I feel like some kind of propaganda minister," he muttered, looking at Jack from beneath hooded eyes.
"Maybe, but it's also necessary in order to maintain the quality and accuracy if the information that's first seen by the public," Jack responded. "Think of it this way: if you put the story out there first, with your own hopefully minimal spin, then nobody can accuse you of hiding any truths until after it went public from some other source. At least this way, you have some semblance of control over it."
"Well, yeah, I guess that's gonna be what we'll have to do," the Kryptonian allowed with a small shrug. "But we still have to figure out how to get one to begin with, otherwise this whole thing is just a thought-exercise."
Jack rubbed his chin for a moment, cocked his head as if a light bulb was going-off over his head, and slowly spoke.
'Tell you what, I still have a few contacts at Houston and down at The Cape, and a few of them are old GNC and BOOSTER OPS guys…those are the Mission Control positions that are in charge of the External Tank Systems, so maybe I can wrangle something."
"Jack, if you can come up with something, I'll owe you. Big time," Superman smiled gratefully.
Several days later, the cell phone that Clark only used as Superman rang. At the moment, Clark was at home in the model railroad room with Jimmy. They were installing a delicate miniature building, an H.O. scale model of Santa Fe Railway's old Summit Depot that used to be at the top of Cajon Pass in the San Bernardino Mountains.
Clark checked the caller I.D., and saw that it was from Jack Medaris.
"Hi, Jack!" Clark answered.
"Kal El, I have some news for you. Can you talk?"
"Sure. Just a sec… Jimmy? I hafta take this, can you pull the fiber optic strands up through the base for the Depot? You can use the ¼-inch drill bit. I'll be right back."
"Sure thing," replied his best friend, turning to get the large Dremel tool.
Moving into the hallway, Clark spoke into the phone. "Hey, Jack, what's up?"
"Mr. Superman, sir, I hope you have a really big warehouse or hangar," Jack began.
Clark could hear the smile in Jack's voice, and couldn't help but smile himself.
"Okay, why? What's going on? Is NASA gonna sell us a tank?" Clark couldn't help the enthusiasm that crept into his voice.
"Nope!" replied Jack.
Clark's face fell. "They're not?" he squeaked.
"Nope! They're gonna GIVE us one!" Jack crowed.
For a moment, Clark couldn't believe his ears. Finally he found his voice. "How'd you manage THAT?"
"When I told a friend of mine down there that Superman needed a favor, he spoke to his superiors, who spoke to theirs, and they said that considering how much help you gave them when you saved that planeload of journalists, not to mention their brand-new prototype shuttle, that it was worth the price of an E.T. and then some!" Jack related. "Besides, they have no use for it after it's jettisoned, so it's not like they're losing any money on it. It could be great PR for NASA, too. So, get your team together, because it looks like Operation Tank Salvage is a GO!"
"Oh, Jack… I don't know how to thank you," Clark sighed.
"Don't worry about that. Worry about where you're gonna stow the thing. That tank is over a hundred-and-fifty feet long!"
"I'll figure something out! Thanks again, Jack!"
As Clark closed his phone, he took a deep breath, and said a silent prayer of thanks. For the first time in months, he felt as though there just might be a bit of light at the end of the tunnel. He also knew that the really hard work was only just beginning.
* * *
1.) Taken from the blog "Law Law Stud," which is maintained by a law student in Los Angeles named Bruce, this quote, as part of his post on "Space Salvage Laws" appeared originally in Popular Mechanics:
"Finally, current space law doesn't allow another solution to the space-junk problem: Salvage. Under the 1967 Outer Space Treaty, nations retain "jurisdiction and control" over their spacecraft even when they are inoperable, meaning that a salvage operator wouldn't be able to take title or claim an award for recovering a defunct craft as is done on earth. Space lawyers (yes, there are space lawyers) have been arguing for years that the proliferation of space junk makes some sort of salvage law necessary, but up to now there has been little progress. The technology for recovering defunct satellites is there, though cleaning up smaller debris fragments would be much, much harder. That's a reason to try to get a handle on the problem sooner, rather than later. A space salvage law might even give a shot in the arm to commercial space efforts, by providing yet another money-making option."
After I came accross this, I called Kennedy Space Center, and spoke to the PR department and the OPS people, and they told me that if Superman needed a used External Tank, they'd probably be more than willing to allow him to salvage one. So there. I LOVE doing research!