Bit by bit, human history continued to be rewritten as the Ganymede's sensitive sensor package reached out and embraced Chiron. Koushik's accidental discovery of what was now believed to be evidence left behind from an apparent Unity reactor overload was the spark that had set off almost maniac activity aboard the ship.

Callum and Koushik, both still in their sleeping garments, had been working relentlessly since their joint discovery. Other scientists and researchers quartered nearest to Koushik had been awakened by the two scientists’ noisy chatter during the early morning hours. As word of the Unity discovery spread rapidly throughout the ship it awoke even more.

Ironically, one of the last people to learn of the discovery was Dr. McKibben as no one on her science team dared wake her lest they receive a reprimand for not following her mandatory sleep order. So upon entering the research bridge after a restful night’s sleep she had been startled to see the entire three-dozen-strong Ganymede research team working furiously, the rolling noise of voices combined with the hum and chatter of busy terminals. All three shifts were awake and working together, crewmen running zig-zag from terminal to terminal as they compared data and cross-referenced figures. The energy and intensity was so bizzare, Dr. McKibben wondered if Dr. Mitra had managed to clone himself thirty-five times overnight and set his creations loose on the bridge.

It didn't take long for Rhona to find out what all the commotion was about and it took even less time for the scientist within her to begin feeding off the vibe that flowed through the bridge. Rhona had half-jokingly told Koushik that they would be making history in a big way. She never expected it to be of this magnitude. No one did. Not even the Space Committee back on Earth.

The next nine hours had seen one new discovery after another. The big question on everyone's mind was answered within the first hour: Chiron would indeed be capable of supporting human life - after overcoming a few obstacles. Chiron's gravity was heavier than Earth's, not totally unexpected since Chiron was a larger planet. To the scientists relief, they were also able confirm that while Chiron was a bit further from Alpha Centauri A than Earth was from Sol, it was brighter which helped offset the difference. As a result, anyone living on Chiron would receive nearly the same amount and intensity of sunlight as on Earth. Alpha Centauri B was too distant to be much of a factor. But future Earth colonists would have to endure some tough challenges if they were to begin a new life here. Chiron's day-cycle was only eighteen hours long and it's year was longer than Earth's. The most sobering hurdle to clear, however, involved Chiron's atmosphere which was heavy with nitrogen, the remainder composed of oxygen with a sprinkling of carbon dioxide. No human would be able to breathe Chiron's air very long unless they wore man-made breathing apparatuses.

And Ganymede sensors had only just begun peeling away the secrets of Chiron. When they entered orbit and began sending probes to the surface, even greater dangers to humans could be uncovered, serious enough to consider the mission a technical failure.

Chiron was indeed habitable but it could be a tough life for the average human. The next several hours would reveal if it would indeed be worth it.

Onto the bustling research bridge walked Ganymede’s commander Rafael Ramirez, tall and thin with dark eyes and the close cropped hair of a military man. He was a rare visitor to this area of the ship. Preferring to remain on the lower deck command bridge to give the scientists as much breathing room as possible to perform their tasks, he now found himself unable to resist observing the research crew as they performed their historic work. Scientists could be touchy regarding their privacy and he did not want be the cause of any uncomfortableness.

An odd group these eggheads.

Ramirez stood just inside the bridge entrance for several unobserved minutes capturing snippets of conversation which allowed him to create a fuzzy picture of what was happening. More than once he raised his eyebrows in surprise when he overheard particularly significant information.

He watched Dr. McKibben as she worked her corner of the bridge, shuffling back and forth between the crew, grabbing PDP’s and handing them from one person to another in a pattern only she knew, pointing at terminals and questioning conclusions. She finally registered Ramirez’s presence out of the corner of her eye. She smiled, walked toward him, and saluted. Ramirez returned the salute.

“Busy day, Doctor?” he said with a smile.

“The busiest,” she answered, brushing back a troublesome strand of hair. “My apologies, sir. I hope you weren’t standing there too long.”

Ramirez waved a hand in dismissal. “I was enjoying the show. By the way, what were you and Hendrix working on just now? He was acting as though he had made a breakthrough of sorts.”

“Just before I saw you? He was running more detailed tests on Chiron’s atmosphere. He believes while long-term exposure to excess nitrogen will not be good for humans, it should be a godsend for Earth plants. With the amount of nitrogen in the soil, I’d expect any plants to grow twice as large in half the time. With some minor genetic tweaking of course.”

Ramirez nodded, his face showing mild surprise. “So, we may have just solved the food problem then?”

Rhona crossed her arms. “It’s a little soon to say, but the data supporting that hypothesis is strong. A few more tests and we should know for certain by the end of the day.”

“Excellent.” He gestured toward Koushik and Callum. “And how are your two superstar’s doing?” Rhona turned toward them and smiled. The two men were working animatedly at Koushik’s terminal, childlike grins cemented on their faces.

“They can’t be stopped, sir,” she answered with obvious pride. She inched closer to Ramirez and said in a low voice, “I think the Chief Signals Officer is concerned he may have lost his assistant.”

Ramirez chuckled. “Well, we can’t have that, can we? Doctor, I know circumstances are quite extraordinary today but I need you to make sure Mr. Cook doesn’t burn himself out working with your team. He’s one of the best at his job and the CSO is going to need him back in his assigned place, rested and ready. Understood?”

“Understood, sir. I’ll voice your concerns to him.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” Rhona saluted, began walking away, then abruptly stopped. “Oh, sir,” she said, turning back toward Ramirez, “have you sent a report off to Command yet?”

Ramirez nodded. “I did so about three hours ago. I expect to hear back from them in about - half an hour.” He smiled and added, “Of course that depends on how long it will take them to recover from the shock.”

Rhona’s face turned serious and she took a step toward him. “What do you think they’ll do, sir?”

Ramirez glanced away and took a deep breath before answering. “Progress is impossible without change. And a lot of key minds back home are being irrecovably, decisively changed right now.” He glanced at Rhona and held her gaze for a moment. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

He saluted and walked out.