Blue Anomaly: Hard Science Fiction

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(as of Sep 09, 2024 20:13:51 UTC – Details)

Ever dreamed of embarking on an unparalleled interstellar voyage? This award-winning story brings that dream within reach, meticulously crafted on the bedrock of realistic technologies, with a steadfast commitment to believability, penned by an author with a scientific background.

If you enjoy uncovering intriguing science facts seamlessly integrated into a coherent narrative, this book—winner of the 2024 American Fiction Awards and the Literary Titan Gold Book Award—is a must-read. Bonus included: dual/alternative ending.

When scientists detect an anomalous star radiating undecipherable signals, Dr. Tristan Smolensky, a distinctive astrophysicist, is dispatched to unravel the star’s mysteries, navigating through the unknown with the hope of making first contact or discovering cosmic secrets.

As the mission progresses, what starts as a quest for knowledge turns into a journey challenging mankind’s science and Tristan’s perception of reality. Is the star a beacon from an advanced civilization, a natural cosmic anomaly, or something sinister? With each step closer, the events could alter humanity’s place in the universe—or end it entirely.

Blending precise astrophysical and nuclear research with speculative science fiction, this hard sci-fi adventure explores possibilities rooted in authentic scientific rigor. Sprinkled with moments of psychedelic wonder, yet still explainable by human biochemistry and biophysics, it invites readers to experience the awe and mystery of the cosmos, together with Tristan’s thought-provoking introspections, providing a deep dive into his mind.

Join the journey to the blue anomaly, where the answers await—or where the unknown remains forever out of reach.

No artificial intelligence was involved in the creation of this story.

From the Publisher

The greatest science fiction writer is Nature itself. The laws of Nature do not constrain an author’s creativity; rather, they inspire a boundless array of ideas, becoming all the more astounding as they remain rooted in realism.

J.K. Bunta

Appendix B: Additional Scientific Facts Related to the Story

i) Interstellar Dust and Gas

Particles of dust and gas pose a significant challenge for any interstellar journey. At relativistic speeds, even tiny microparticles and hydrogen atoms bombard the spacecraft similarly to particles in accelerators, causing intense radiation and material wear. Fortunately, measurements indicate that the Sun is located in a region of the galaxy with a low density of gas and dust, formed by supernova explosions several million years ago.

Highly durable and lightweight alloys, such as beryllium copper, as well as carbon aerogels, already exist and have demonstrated self-healing capabilities in experiments. Properly arranged layers of these materials in the direction of travel can effectively protect the spacecraft.

Moreover, with acceleration corresponding to only one-tenth of Earth’s gravitational acceleration, the ship reaches a maximum speed of 95 percent of the speed of light at the midpoint of the journey. This reduces particle energy compared to acceleration generating the equivalent of Earth’s gravity, further improving the efficiency of the vessel’s protection.

ii) Radiation Shielding

The level of radiation generated by collisions of a spacecraft with interstellar particles and cosmic radiation at relativistic speeds is extreme. However, it can be reduced through multilayered protection. A magnetic shield placed in front of the ship effectively blocks charged particles. The portion that penetrates it (such as neutral particles or gamma radiation), along with secondary radiation produced by particle absorption in the protective layers, can be mitigated by a combination of layers made of materials that absorb various types and energies of particles.

In addition to conventionally known materials with a high density of protons and neutrons, experiments have revealed unconventional shielding possibilities using so-called radiovorous fungi. These fungi can convert a portion of radioactive gamma radiation into chemical energy, utilizing it for their growth and biomass formation, similar to how standard plants convert solar energy through photosynthesis.

Observations from the Chernobyl nuclear power plant after its accident, as well as experiments on the International Space Station, have shown that due to this radio-synthesis, fungi of the species Cryptococcus neoformans, Wangiella dermatitidis, and Cladosporium sphaerospermum in an environment with radiation up to five times normal values grow three times faster than in a regular environment. Radiovorous fungi can thus form a lightweight, self-growing, and self-repairing barrier, as they are undemanding in terms of nutrition.

iii) Curiosities of Evolution

Throughout hundreds of millions of years, Earth’s nature has repeatedly arrived at organisms that are morphologically or functionally similar, despite lacking evolutionary relatedness. Notable examples include hydrodynamic adaptations for fast swimming and pursuing prey in fish (sharks), reptiles (ichthyosaurs, now extinct), and mammals (dolphins), all of them sharing almost identical overall shape. Similarly, there’s convergent evolution seen in the development of wings in pterosaurs and bats, as well as the remarkably similar eye structures in humans and octopuses.

In contrast, paleontological records reveal instances of complete abandonment of certain body concepts, as seen in the Ediacaran fauna. This early attempt by Earth’s nature to create multicellular organisms likely went extinct without leaving evolutionary descendants. Some members of this fauna grew to sizes of approximately one meter and, from today’s perspective, appear as creatures from another planet.

iv) Intuition in Exact Science

Contrary to common belief that intuition has no place in exact science, history reveals the opposite. In ancient times, precise mathematical formulas, like the one calculating the volume of a truncated pyramid (Problem 14 on the Moscow Mathematical Papyrus), were discovered by the Ancient Egyptians without exact derivations or empirical experiments. Such precision couldn’t be achieved through trials with vessels filled with sand or water, nor without the use of integral calculus, which wasn’t discovered until three and a half millennia later.

Another notable example is Schrödinger’s equation, the foundation of quantum mechanics, initially conceived intuitively by its creator Erwin Schrödinger (1887 – 1961) and later mathematically derived.

Henri Poincaré (1854 – 1912), the renowned French mathematician and theoretical physicist who laid the groundwork for the special theory of relativity and predicted the existence of gravitational waves as early as 1905, aptly summarized this fascinating ability: “We prove by logic, but we discover by intuition.”

v) Why Plants Aren’t Black

In Chapter I, the fascinating question of why plants are not black is posed. Considering black’s maximum radiation energy absorption—a hallmark of efficiency in nature—this question is indeed logical. However, several factors prevent nature from adopting this seemingly optimal strategy:

● Evolutionary Progress: Evolution is an ongoing process, indicating that plants’ coloration might evolve toward greater efficiency in the future. Furthermore, just as plants have historically been able to, animals might also be capable of photosynthesis in the not-too-distant future. An illustrative example is the green “solar-powered sea slug,” Elysia chlorotica, which already possesses genes that support the endosymbiotic integration of photosynthesizing chloroplasts directly within its cells.

● Current Effectiveness: The photosynthesis mechanisms in place, primarily utilizing green chlorophyll, are already quite efficient, suggesting that the evolutionary pressure for a drastic change in pigment coloration may not be significant.

● Innovative Pigments: The existence of unique photosensitive pigments, such as phycoerythrins, and the behavior of complementary chromatic adaptation in certain cyanobacteria—which alter their pigments and, consequently, their colors based on the ocean depth they inhabit—illustrate nature’s experiments with optimizing light absorption.

● Energy Management Challenges: Achieving higher energy absorption efficiency necessitates mechanisms for shielding against excessive light and dissipating heat—a particular challenge for terrestrial plants. This is crucial for managing the heat generated from absorbing highly energetic blue photons.

● Photosynthesis Bottlenecks: Inefficiencies in the photosynthesis process, especially the slow and ineffective enzyme responsible for carbon fixation (the so-called RuBisCo enzyme), present significant limitations. Improving this enzyme’s efficiency is essential, as absorbing more energy would be futile if this step could not keep pace.

● Evolutionary History: The predominance of chlorophyll might be a legacy of ancient Earth conditions, dominated by purple photosynthetic organisms. This historical factor suggests that the green color of contemporary plants is an evolutionary adaptation to utilize the spectral energies not absorbed by these ancient organisms.

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0D5TM2VHD
Publisher ‏ : ‎ (June 14, 2024)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 14, 2024
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 581 KB
Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 193 pages