After a moment, Susan stopped, and then interrupted them. "I hadn't thought about . . . that," she said. "I'll bet a three-year mission will have a lot of problems of daily living like that."
Frank rose and ushered her to a chair before answering. "There are hundreds of problems like that, Susie," he replied. "Take this waste problem. On a short mission, they either carry it home, or vent it to space. But on a long mission, we don't really want to do either."
"That's right," David put in. "It would be stupid to add storage just to carry shit. I hate to say it, but we're probably just going to have to devise a way to vent it, after removing the water content. We're 90 percent sure we'll be able to get drinking water from the water ice on the comet. That other ten percent bothers me. If we have an emergency, or don't make it to the comet, the ability to process urine and feces into drinking water could save our lives."
Susan shuddered. "Drinking urine? Ugh! How could you even think of such a thing?"
Frank frowned. "Oh, it's not an insoluble problem. We can probably do it with a series of filters. The problem is that there are hundreds of problems like this; the kind of thing that nobody thinks of, until it suddenly occurs to someone. As I keep saying, we're not NASA, with hundreds of people studying every aspect of living in space. I'm scared to death that some simple thing no one thought about could kill everyone aboard."
Susan just sat for a moment, lost in thought. Suddenly she straightened. "Finally!" she said. "We've finally found a way for me to really contribute to this project! Susan Andrews, Vice President in Charge of Simple Problems. If there's one thing I'm good at, it's computer researches. By the end of the day, I'll bet I'll be able to tell you how many filters you need, and what kind."
Frank grinned. "Great idea! I've really been worried about this. Make up your own title and salary. But one thing," He sobered. "You'll have to be careful about your research. You won't be able to use any classified stuff from NASA or other government agencies. We can't give them evidence to use to prove violations of the technology transfer laws."
She laughed lightly. "Dear, you just don't understand research. You think everything the government does is classified. But government scientists are like any other scientists. When they learn something, they can't wait to publish it. Government agencies are always being pushed to allow publication in professional journals. And once it's published, it's public. Aside from military stuff, I don't think there's very much NASA stuff that hasn't been published somewhere. It's just a matter of finding it." She grinned. "There's no need to fear! Susan Andrews is here!"
Frank shook his head. "Thank heaven you don't look like Underdog!" he said, catching her reference to an old cartoon character.
Susan hurried out to begin her new duties, and Frank sighed in relief. "You know, I do feel much better knowing Susan is on top of it."
David grinned and nodded. "It's nice to know that if we can manage to get this circus into space, Susan is the one in charge of keeping us alive."
Three months to launch, and the pace was frantic. If they missed the launch window for this pass of Carter IV, they wouldn't have another chance for six and a half years; and Frank knew he wouldn't be able to hold it together that long. The hull and main engine crews had moved on to OK-2K1, now just 'K1', and formerly the "Ramenskoye" Buran. Frank had decided to work on the incomplete one, reasoning that he would have to strip the third Buran in the process of rebuilding it, so the incompleteness just gave them a head start. Besides, K1 had also been a 'flight' Buran, while the remaining orbiter, 'OK-KS', now simply 'KS', had been the Energia test version.
Electronics, guidance, and computer techs swarmed K2, the launch ship, installing newly made equipment, testing circuits, and checking software and hardware. Fighting them for room in the cramped airframe were members of Susan's "Habitability Department."
Dr. Ternayev swore that the maneuvering engines now at the rear of K2 were the most advanced and most powerful ion engines available. The four RD-120 main engines from the core stage were constantly surrounded by rocket techs, as were the four newly received Zenit 3SL strap-ons. A large Brazilian construction crew was putting final touches on the launch tower on the pad outside the massive hangar. It looked spindly and frail when compared to the towers that launched the original Buran, but as Frank was weary of saying, they were not NASA.
In the unpainted control center, Brazilian techs studied and learned how to use the state-of-the-art tracking and control equipment from the designers who had only just finished assembling it.
NASA was also busy. Unsuccessful in the smear campaign, they were appealing to the United Nations Space Authority, protesting the launch on safety grounds. In its response, the Brazilian government pointed out that between Alcântara and Africa lay the entire Atlantic Ocean, that their launch site had an excellent safety record, and that their inspectors were continually verifying the safety of pre-launch procedures. They also pointed out that ESA was launching comparable-sized Ariane-5 rockets from Kourou in French Guiana, only a few miles north of Alcântara.
The American media continued to hint that something nefarious was going on in Brazil, but the hints were vague, and no longer mentioned Frank by name, thanks to his active and tenacious lawyers. At the UN, though, the American Ambassador continually invoked the threat of 'space terrorism', and bemoaned the fact that Brazil was harboring 'a known felon with a grudge against the U.S.'
However, his Brazilian friends were standing firm, defying the US, and insisting that it provide proof of Frank's 'crimes'. Most of the UN members seemed somewhat bemused, not understanding why the U.S. would attack one of the most successful developing nations in the world. The Brazilian Ambassador took every opportunity to question the motives and methods of the U.S. Several U.S. attempts to push through sanctions against Brazil were rebuffed by humiliating margins.
As he had expected, the U.S. government moved to seize all of Frank's assets in the U.S., and was very surprised to find that they consisted solely of the small house in Missouri where he had been born, and a small fund for its upkeep. Frank's attorneys promptly filed suit against the Attorney General, Secretary of State, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and heads of the Department of Justice, and NASA by name.
But their campaign had been having an effect. Frank's investments, totaling millions, had been seized in three countries due to allegations he was involved in terrorism. Two other nations were 'considering' actions, forcing Frank to move his investments yet again. His name was being mentioned more and more often alongside that of Osama Bin Laden, and despite the best efforts of Frank and his attorneys, his name was becoming associated with terrorism all over the world, among those who sole news source was TV or radio.
Frank's counteroffensive was also having an effect, though. Five countries had refused U.S. requests to seize Frank's assets. Newspapers all over the world were seizing on Frank's news releases. Pictures of K2, with a large picture of planet Earth on its large tail fin, were to be found in every country of the world, along with explanations of Frank's activities, and his refusal to 'bow down to the powerful'. Space experts, interviewed by magazines and newspapers, were forced to agree that a Buran made a lousy missile. A number of them denounced Frank's goal of intercepting the comet as 'science fiction', or 'unrealistic'. However, a significant number of them were enthusiastic proponents, and the pictures coming out of Alcântara only bolstered their enthusiasm.
Finally, the ship, K2, was ready. Work had shifted to the core stage and strap-ons, and Frank invited most of the upper levels of Brazil's government to Alcântara for the naming and christening of the ship. He paid for plane tickets for dozens of reporters, bloggers and his most vocal supporters, as well as a number of wealthy friends. He chartered a jet to fly shuttle trips to Alcântara from Brasilia, carrying his government guests.