Its radiance was now overwhelmingly bright, making the planet's surface glow white. Rizki and Gayatri were deeply shocked and immediately realized what was happening. It was the superflares! It was the catastrophe dreaded by all creatures on this planet. It was the monster that had wiped out life down there, and in that instant it had struck without warning.
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On the last day in Proxima Centauri b, Sunday, January 5, 2459, Rizki and Gayatri were assigned to transport the marines to a cave location on the bright side. Scanning results from orbit showed that the cave was quite deep and connected to a wide and very long underground river. The marines would deploy an underwater drone into the river to scan its aquatic life. This was their final mission in Proxima Centauri b. Tomorrow morning, Bimasakti would depart from Alpha Centauri and begin the journey back to Earth.
Yesterday, Rizki and Gayatri also completed a mission on the bright side to scan its surface and collect some soil samples. There was no life on the surface of the bright side, so no samples of living creatures were taken from there. They also understood all the risks and dangers present on the bright side and how to apply safety protocols there. The biggest danger was the superflares that could occur at any time. If that happened, the safety protocol they could follow was to seek shelter inside a cave as it would protect them from direct exposure to superflares. They could also inject radiazine, a substance created by scientists to help protect the body's organs from superflares exposure. Each person was allowed to receive a maximum of two doses of radiazine, and inside their spacesuit pockets, they had two radiazine injectors available for emergency situations. The next effort they could make was to return as quickly as possible to the oasis belt. And the final effort was to shield themselves from direct radiation exposure using any object or barrier that could be used. The more they shielded themselves from direct radiation exposure, the greater the chance of survival.
That morning at six o'clock, Rizki and Gayatri were already seated in the pilot seats of the Bimasakti-Alpha shuttle. Behind them sat two marines, Sergeant Iwan and Corporal Nyoman, who were tasked with carrying the underwater drone to the underground river in the cave they were heading to. The cave's location was quite far within the bright side. With the shuttle's full speed, it took about two hours to reach it from Bimasakti. They immediately departed, and everyone was wearing full spacesuits. Bimasakti-Alpha took off from the deck and flew directly at full speed towards the horizon where the bright side was located.
The flight to the horizon provided a unique experience as they would witness the sunrise of Proxima Centauri on the horizon. The closer they got to the bright side, the higher the sun would be. Upon reaching the middle of the bright side, the Proxima Centauri sun would be directly overhead. Additionally, the other two suns, Alpha Centauri AB, would appear as two shining jewels in the East. These were the three suns illuminating planet Proxima Centauri b. However, due to Proxima Centauri b's rotation around the Proxima Centauri sun, every eleven days, the two Alpha Centauri AB suns would be on the dark side. Their light would sparkle but not be strong enough to illuminate the dark side. These two suns could only light up the dark side like a full moon lights up the Earth. It was only the Proxima Centauri sun that sustained and extinguished life on planet Proxima Centauri b. The sun sustained life in the oasis belt but simultaneously extinguished life on the bright side.
After an hour of flight, the Proxima Centauri sun was already high in the sky, illuminating the land. The landscape looked like a bright day on Earth. However, all that could be seen there was dry and barren land. There was no sign of life. Not a single animal or plant could be seen. The air temperature began to rise, approaching the boiling point of water, evaporating all the water on the land. Total drought and the sweep of superflares that had been going on for millions of years had eradicated life on the bright side. However, they had discovered the presence of a large hidden river beneath the surface of the bright side, and they wanted to know what kind of life existed within it.
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The Alpha Centauri Expedition
Science FictionIn the 25th century, following the discovery of the ancient city of Atlantis in the Sunda Strait and the construction of a new capital also named Atlantis, Indonesia transformed into a superpower leading the world in technological advancements. That...
