Moon Explosion and Radiation (For Sci-Fi Book)

[Mr Ask]

I am working on a sci-fi book revolving around an impossible human ability (think "the force") and would like to create an as-plausible-as-possible explanation for it. Godzilla can't actually exist, but still we have a background story involving nuclear bombs and radiation.

Hopefully this will be a fun way for you to flex your scientific knowledge, as there isn't necessarily a single correct answer, as long as the end result is a good solid detailed way of getting to the situation in my story's plot.

 

The easiest way to ask what I need to know is probably to outline my skeleton story with some variables (X, Y, Z, etc.) that I would want the more scientifically in-the-know people to fill in.

 

 

In my skeleton story taking place X years into the future, a moon base has been established primarily for Y. A cataclysmic explosion takes a chunk out of the moon and showers Earth with Z, a cocktail of radiation that primarily kills off the people heavily exposed to it via cancer, but their children and their children's children start to gain this purely fantasy-based ability.

But they can only use this ability when exposed to W, which is given off several times each day by aftershocks from the moon base (the sister base on the other side of the moon still somewhat functions and automatically feeds materials to the destroyed site, which leak, build up, improperly mix with chemicals from the destroyed site, and non-violently give off bursts of W which shower the earth).

 

 

The moon base is important because the aftershocks of W need to continue happening so that ~50% of the population can use this ability briefly a few times each day and night, so the source needs to be something that follows Earth through space. The series ends when they are finally able to get back onto the moon and shut down the sister base.

 

Another important point is that the moon explosion also destroys tons of electronics on Earth, so either the explosion itself created a strong electromagnetic pulse or a strong solar flare may have caused the explosion and also destroyed electronics on Earth. I am fine with working a magnetic shift in Earth's poles into the story, but if so I will have more questions to follow regarding how it would impact humans after being set back by the initial explosion.

 

 

As for the variables, I will explain my initial naive ideas and then hope someone can fill in holes etc.

 

X: Enough years into the future that we have made a moon base which I expect to be used for refueling and research. I'm thinking around ~2100 is a safe bet.

 

Y: I expect it to be for refueling and research. In my vision I see a small group of scientists and engineers at each base, one on opposite sides of the moon. In helping me define Y, the purpose of the moon bases may also impact their locations on the moon. I'm currently expecting them to be near the poles. The purpose of the moon bases needs to lend itself to catastrophic explosions and is tied to Z. Maybe they just installed a nuclear power source? Help me fill this in.

 

Z: People need to get exposed to something that kills them of cancer but not everyone. I need a way to say that only about half of the population got hit. If we say that it was the half facing the moon, then I need a type of radiation that won't pass all the way through Earth (blocked by the iron core?). Or I need a way to explain why pockets of people were protected, such as by being under city domes (in that case then I also need to explain the dome material and the X year will have to increase).

At the same time, electronics are fried. If this is because of the explosion, I would need an example of what happened to cause the explosion and what was in the explosion to create an EMP. Or it could be that a solar flare caused both the explosion and the world-wide EMP. In either case I would also need to know how much earth's magnetic field would get in the way of this, so I can make it in flux at the time (in the process of reversing or etc.) This would later lead to questions about the impact on daily lives of this, but that will be another post for later.

 

W: Lots of ways to be creative here. The functional moon base still automatically pumps chemicals to the other base even though it is gone. We have a build-up of something that releases a shockwave of something that hits earth and temporarily triggers this special ability in humans. Then it builds up again and repeats a few times per 24 hours. Help me out here. Since this is the thing that triggers the fantasy ability, we're bordering the sci-fi line here.

 

 

 

I would appreciate any help filling in these points. If I did it on my own I'm sure I would later get ripped upon scrutiny for "using chemicals that wouldn't actually react that way" etc.

And this does need to be detailed too, since the 2nd series takes place during these events.

 

 

 

Regards,

Mr. Ask

 

[LabRat1]

This is not a bad idea. I find coming up with stories really fun. Okay so anyways, Wouldn't one moon base constantly be on the dark side? So the one on the side which is constantly in contact with sun rays can harness solar energy, whereas the other one can have some nuclear energy power-plant, or some thing on those lines, and the catastrophe can take place there.

 

If you're having a story timeline based in the future, wouldn't cancer be curable?(like how common colds are treated presently, because of course eventually medical sciences will improve). Also if you're choosing 2100 or around that time, i don't think we as a race would have such advanced domes to protect us from such a huge nuclear fallout.( Just an assumption, I may be, and hopefully am wrong)

 

Also if you find too much trouble trying to come up with theories, just come up with a fictitious solar system by which you can easily accommodate your theories.

 

If you want some inspiration, I find playing video games really helpful or even just watching videos of crazy inventions (Tesla highly recommended)

 

I'll think of more stuff and I'll keep you posted.

[zapatos]

This is not a bad idea. I find coming up with stories really fun. Okay so anyways, Wouldn't one moon base constantly be on the dark side? So the one on the side which is constantly in contact with sun rays can harness solar energy, whereas the other one can have some nuclear energy power-plant, or some thing on those lines, and the catastrophe can take place there.

 

You mean the inside?

[LabRat1]

Ah shucks..okay my bad...I was thinking about only one side of the moon getting sunlight while typing this out, and obviously I just realised it. My bad. I apologise.

[zapatos]

I'm just glad that someone other than me typed faster than they were thinking for a change!

[dimreepr]

X: Enough years into the future that we have made a moon base which I expect to be used for refueling and research. I'm thinking around ~2100 is a safe bet.

 

Y: I expect it to be for refueling and research. In my vision I see a small group of scientists and engineers at each base, one on opposite sides of the moon. In helping me define Y, the purpose of the moon bases may also impact their locations on the moon. I'm currently expecting them to be near the poles. The purpose of the moon bases needs to lend itself to catastrophic explosions and is tied to Z. Maybe they just installed a nuclear power source? Help me fill this in.

 

Z: People need to get exposed to something that kills them of cancer but not everyone. I need a way to say that only about half of the population got hit. If we say that it was the half facing the moon, then I need a type of radiation that won't pass all the way through Earth (blocked by the iron core?). Or I need a way to explain why pockets of people were protected, such as by being under city domes (in that case then I also need to explain the dome material and the X year will have to increase).

At the same time, electronics are fried. If this is because of the explosion, I would need an example of what happened to cause the explosion and what was in the explosion to create an EMP. Or it could be that a solar flare caused both the explosion and the world-wide EMP. In either case I would also need to know how much earth's magnetic field would get in the way of this, so I can make it in flux at the time (in the process of reversing or etc.) This would later lead to questions about the impact on daily lives of this, but that will be another post for later.

 

W: Lots of ways to be creative here. The functional moon base still automatically pumps chemicals to the other base even though it is gone. We have a build-up of something that releases a shockwave of something that hits earth and temporarily triggers this special ability in humans. Then it builds up again and repeats a few times per 24 hours. Help me out here. Since this is the thing that triggers the fantasy ability, we're bordering the sci-fi line here.

 

 

X = Who knows, the race to the moon was born of competition, so you can safely place it at some point in the future.

 

Y = again, who knows, so again it's up to you're imagination.

 

Z = Who cares? Radiation as we know it, is not capable of doing what you require from that distance (if we're safe from the suns radiation), but a virus might be, if it could be transmitted from the moon to Earth.

 

Sci-fi doesn't require facts to be plausible, it requires, like all fiction, a reasonable narrative...

Edited July 20, 2017 by dimreepr

[Mr Ask]

If you want some inspiration, I find playing video games really helpful or even just watching videos of crazy inventions (Tesla highly recommended)

I come from a background in video games. I've been a video-game programmer for over 14 years and was a senior graphics programmer on Final Fantasy XV. I'm a bit tired of programming and this is my beginning into a more creative line of work.

But I can't pretend I am not a technical person and it is that part of me that prefers to have all the details fleshed out and solid.

 

 

This is not a bad idea. I find coming up with stories really fun. Okay so anyways, Wouldn't one moon base constantly be on the dark side? So the one on the side which is constantly in contact with sun rays can harness solar energy, whereas the other one can have some nuclear energy power-plant, or some thing on those lines, and the catastrophe can take place there.

Although you are thinking of one side pointing away from earth (as someone pointed out), near the poles we would expect very long nights or days, and there are regions that are permanently dark as it's noted here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_outpost_(NASA)#Reference_architecture

So it can still work.

The permanently dark areas have been conjectured for a long time to be the best places to find water (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lunar_water), making it that much more reasonable.

 

 

Also if you find too much trouble trying to come up with theories, just come up with a fictitious solar system by which you can easily accommodate your theories.

Z = Who cares? Radiation as we know it, is not capable of doing what you require from that distance (if we're safe from the suns radiation), but a virus might be, if it could be transmitted from the moon to Earth.

 

Sci-fi doesn't require facts to be plausible, it requires, like all fiction, a reasonable narrative...

I originally set this story on another planet in the M31 galaxy with the "ability" people being an alien race and passed that story off to a few people for a temperature reading, and it was universally cold.

The less the story relies on "just make up whatever you want" the better it polls. I agree with this mentality since I appreciate scientifically accurate movies and little details such as explosions not making noise in space (and I am conversely bothered by explosions that do make noises in space).

 

 

 

 

Z = Who cares? Radiation as we know it, is not capable of doing what you require from that distance (if we're safe from the suns radiation)

We can still burn from UV radiation and direct hits by solar flares still get through our magnetic field.

This moon explosion is intense enough to remove a large portion of the moon (20% or so). It looks from earth as if it has had a bite taken out of it.

If we can define the cocktail of energy it released, it should be strong enough to have an impact on people on earth, and again this may be a time of magnetic flux for the earth too (the poles are expected to flip soon).

 

 

In any case, I appreciate the input. Keep it coming.

 

 

Mr. Ask

[LabRat1]

I come from a background in video games. I've been a video-game programmer for over 14 years and was a senior graphics programmer on Final Fantasy XV. I'm a bit tired of programming and this is my beginning into a more creative line of work.

But I can't pretend I am not a technical person and it is that part of me that prefers to have all the details fleshed out and solid.

 

I'm not asking you to program anything. Just playing the game on itself can arouse (?) your creativity. But then again whom am I to tell a person like you :3

 

I'm just glad that someone other than me typed faster than they were thinking for a change!

 

I feel you buddy.

 

 

In such stories, politics in the story line can spice things alot.

I originally set this story on another planet in the M31 galaxy with the "ability" people being an alien race and passed that story off to a few people for a temperature reading, and it was universally cold.

The less the story relies on "just make up whatever you want" the better it polls. I agree with this mentality since I appreciate scientifically accurate movies and little details such as explosions not making noise in space (and I am conversely bothered by explosions that do make noises in space).

 

It doesn't have to be in a ficticious galaxy. You can try having it in Andromeda or maybe the TRAPPIST 1 system. I personally feel that the TRAPPIST 1 system has a good setting for multi-civilizations. You can have life forms on all the planets, the small red dwarf can be used as a threat(as a short life time, the story can be set in the dying years of the star) and stuff like that.

 

But then it deviates alot from your thiniking of keeping it relatable.

Edited July 21, 2017 by LabRat1

[Mr Ask]

M31 is the Andromeda galaxy.

It's the part about alien races that polled poorly, so regardless of the place aliens are out. One non-religious person said he would prefer an act of god over alien races.

 

I will post a few sister topics to this one in other sub-forums.

 

 

Mr. Ask

[Tub]

Hello, Mr Ask. Here's what i've come up with:

 

Y/Z: Y is perhaps an Area 51-type base, set up to examine a vast alien spacecraft which has lain dormant for many years. All attempts to enter the craft have failed until one day when sensors pick up vibrations in the craft and soldiers sent to investigate finally gain entry through a hidden door which automatically opens as they approach.

 

At the same time, unknown to the soldiers, 2 time-activated survival-pods open in the craft's control-room releasing 2 aliens who start to activate the craft. As it slowly rises, those in the base, thinking that the investigating soldiers have been killed and so the craft is hostile, begin to fire at it. The aliens activate a force-shield around the craft, nullifying the base's attack, and blast the base with some type of cosmic ray which sets the base ablaze. At that moment, the soldiers who entered the craft discover the 2 aliens, see what is happening and,in the ensuing fight, all the soldiers and the aliens are killed. The spacecraft,however,with it's ray still firing automatically, rises up into orbit around the moon. The fires at the base reach nuclear reactors and ammunitions stores and the resulting catastrophic explosions do that imagined damage to the moon.

 

Pockets of people not affected could perhaps be those who are already working where protective-clothing is

worn: scientists, engineers, technicians etc, in places such as laboratories, nuclear plants, NASA, and military and aerospace industries, where they are well-protected in cleanroom environments in which contamination is controlled. These would also be among the best people to deal with the aftermath of the disaster.

 

W: The spacecraft now orbiting the moon takes on a kind of lighthouse effect as each orbit causes the ray to sweep across the earth's surface causing, in turn, a vast " air shower " ( See "Air shower ( physics ) on Wikipedia ) of ionized particles and electromagnetic radiation as the ray reaches earth's atmosphere. ( Attempts to destroy the craft with missiles are all foiled by it's still-activated protective force-shield ). The air shower could also coincide with a period of minimum solar activity, an 11 year cycle when the ultraviolet output of the sun decreases, shrinking the upper atmosphere, allowing the air shower to penetrate more easily.

 

X: The next peak of solar minimum activity is around 2019/2020, so any future-date setting of the story would need to account for all the succeeding 11 year cycles, if necessary.

 

I hope this is of some help to you but, even if it isn't, it's been fun for me. Good luck anyway.

 

Edit: Hah! You must have posted at the same time as me so i didn't see your latest post about "anti-alienism " bias until i'd already posted! Sorry. Perhaps the aliens could be exchanged for human space-pirates who had stolen the spacecraft? ( I still think aliens would be better, lol).

Edited July 21, 2017 by Tub

[LabRat1]

M31 is the Andromeda galaxy.

 

Oh....Okay...I need to read up more now

[Mr Ask]

On 7/21/2017 at 9:39 AM, Tub said:

Edit: Hah! You must have posted at the same time as me so i didn't see your latest post about "anti-alienism " bias until i'd already posted! Sorry. Perhaps the aliens could be exchanged for human space-pirates who had stolen the spacecraft?

You reminded me of the 11-year cycle.  That may play an important role in picking the year of the story.  Thank you for that.


Mr. Ask

[Tub]

You're welcome.

[Damateur]

Y:  Antimatter generation and storage. A combination of solar arrays and thorium reactors on the moon are used to gradually produce antimatter intended to fuel the first interstellar vehicle.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/93/Lunar_Thorium_concentrations.jpg

   There are several moon bases for the extraction of thorium (at the highest concentration areas - see the Wikipedia map) which is then piped to the reactors. The reactors then power a particle collider to produce the antimatter which is sent via magnetic containment tubes to a storage facility.

   Because of the heavier solar radiation (no atmosphere for protection), the moon bases have hardened electronics (which protects against the solar flare). When the solar flare hits, the moon bases are mostly okay except for the storage facility which has a crucial failure in an older circuit – inattentive maintenance allowed it to remain in place for too long.

   Alternately have the storage facility in the sunlight while the other facilities are in shadow during the solar flare.

 

Z:  Not half the population unless the deaths happen over decades. Too many bodies too quickly becomes a hazard in itself.

   A solar flare will knock out the electronics for only half the planet but two happening roughly twelve hours apart during the summer (so the northern hemisphere is more directly facing the sun) should take out the electronics except in the most southern portions of the world.

   However exactly two solar flares at twelve hours apart would seem a bit contrived. Instead a series of flares occur from a massive sunspot: a large one then two hours later a 'small' one then another five hours later another 'small' one with predictions of that being the last. But a final large one occurs another eight hours later (total of fifteen hours after the first). This would cover pretty much everything if the first takes out the USA and the last wipes out Russia and Europe. Japan and China get the smaller ones which do wipe out a lot of the electronics but not everything.

   Obviously you would adjust the timing and locations to suit your story.

 

   With the large solar flares causing widespread electronics failures, the containment of various biohazards is compromised. The best facilities remain sealed. But in your future world, there could be a boiwarfare race happening with plenty of poorly prepared facilities. Those release all sorts of boiweapons which cause disease and sterility in many areas of the world even after air travel is shut down (due to the solar flares).

   Some of the bioweapons could be vectors intended to augment soldiers giving you various regional human variants.

 

   With much of the lunar bases automated, for a time the thorium continues to be processed, fed into the reactors and the antimatter fed out …

   At the other end the antimatter is propelled out and gradually falls to the surface of the moon where it interacts with various minerals producing a variety of radioactive bursts at regular intervals.

   Eventually the thorium production fails so antimatter production falls. But the solar arrays could allow a much reduced antimatter production.

 

   The regular radiation bursts fuel an adaptive trait which some of the bioweapons activated in the infected people – or their offspring – giving you the people with abilities you wanted which activate only some of the time.

 

   Um, 20% of the moon is a huge amount of material. If that falls on the Earth then everything except maybe bacteria dies. Or maybe all the bacteria die too. Even if (for example) the south pole of the moon is cut off and thrust away so it misses the Earth and just keeps going, the other 80% of the moon will be driven the other way at one fourth of that velocity.

   I thought of something that sort of works but don't know how it could really happen: a chunk of the moon is sliced off and given just a little sideways propulsion which effectively just sends the chunk sliding around on the surface to rest in a different place. This changes the look of the moon but not its mass. Changing the mass of the moon would cause many problems for the Earth and humanity.

 

Hope these ideas help.

[Mr Ask]

This helps a lot.  I think I can work with several parts here.

As for the moon explosion, I tend to think that most moon rocks would fall into orbit and most that fell to Earth would evaporate.  Only a few chunks would do damage.  And I have control over how much damage there would be by picking the site of the explosion.  There would be no damage at all if it were on the far side of the moon for example.
But I am leaning towards a point facing Earth because it would create a cavity that would direct the following energy (and EMP) bursts directly towards Earth.  But that means the blast pushes the moon away from Earth rather than just adding spin, etc.

Decreasing the size of the blast is an option, but I do want a changed sky in my story.  A misshapen moon, a ring forming around Earth, and very frequent Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis.


Mr. Ask

[imatfaal]

You might want to read Seveneves by Neal Stephenson - I will not say too much to avoid spoilers apart from the fact that it is a brilliant read

[Area54]

4 minutes ago, Mr Ask said:

This helps a lot.  I think I can work with several parts here.

As for the moon explosion, I tend to think that most moon rocks would fall into orbit and most that fell to Earth would evaporate.  Only a few chunks would do damage.  And I have control over how much damage there would be by picking the site of the explosion.  There would be no damage at all if it were on the far side of the moon for example.
But I am leaning towards a point facing Earth because it would create a cavity that would direct the following energy (and EMP) bursts directly towards Earth.  But that means the blast pushes the moon away from Earth rather than just adding spin, etc.

Decreasing the size of the blast is an option, but I do want a changed sky in my story.  A misshapen moon, a ring forming around Earth, and very frequent Aurora Borealis and Aurora Australis.


Mr. Ask

Just a bunch of minor points.

Not evaporate, but burn up, or incinerate, or volatilise.

For an explosion of the magnitude you appear to be envisaging having it on the far side would not stop some of the "chunks" striking the Earth.

A blast poweful enough to move the moon any signficant distance from the Earth would destroy the moon.

I'm at a loss as to why an explosion on the moon is going to influence aurora, but perhaps I haven't read all the posts closely enough.

Good luck with your writing.

[Mr Ask]

The blast will not cause auroras, they will be the result of the following EMP bursts (properties similar to a solar flare, but other forms of energy mixed in too) sent to Earth every few hours.
I expect that the auroras will linger for a bit after bursts rather than immediately disappear.

I will look into the book, imatfaal.


Mr. Ask

[Damateur]

   The antimatter containment unit could be underground near the south pole of the moon. Someone wants to sabotage the antimatter collecting and tries planting explosives on the antimatter containment unit. While they luck out with the timing of the solar flares, they made a mistake with their assumptions about the antimatter containment unit - they thought it would be a sphere but it turns out to be a torus (donut) so they attach the C-4 to the outer edge of the containment torus. When the (insufficient) C-4 explodes it only ruptures the outer edge of the containment torus weakening the magnetic field at that edge. As the circulating antimatter escapes it flies out radially causing a multitude of micro-blasts gradually slicing a portion of the moon off from the inside out.
   Until the final failure of the containment torus which produces a large enough explosion to break the moon section off. Since the torus wasn't perfectly centered, the moon slice is propelled off at a bit of an angle with only enough energy to fall into a trailing orbit behind the moon. This leaves the moon with a lopped off bottom edge and a roughly disk-shaped section trailing behind while spinning slowly.

   How is that for an unusual sight in your sky?

   The explosion (of the antimatter containment torus) would disrupt the nearby portion of the magnetic pipeline to the antimatter containment torus creating a break more centrally located on the moon's surface where the new small batches of antimatter fall out of the (newly made) end of the magnetic pipeline to react and send pulses of radiation towards Earth. Since the auroras are causes by some of the solar radiation being funneled towards the poles by the Earth's magnetic fields, when the pulses occur the closer pole (depending upon the tilt due to time of year) would have a slightly more vibrant aurora. 

[Mr Ask]

That’s quite a story.  There may be bits I can use, but an important aspect of the series I am creating is that the enemy is fate, rather than military, terrorists, etc.
Of course terrorists, military, etc., all exist during the story and existed 70 years prior (during the time of this moon explosion), but these will be background elements at most, and I am currently considering that mankind is not at a point of private space exploration—everyone on the moon will be heavily tested and trained astronauts as we think of them today (working pretty well with each other, responsible, etc.)

I want to break free of a few tropes with this series and its follower.  For the majority of both series, the villain is fate.  Women don’t trip when running away, no one walks down a dark alley after being told of danger, etc.  People make intelligent decisions throughout, but fate always catches up to them.

The explosion has to be accidental, but I can shift some ideas around so that their best efforts may accidentally make things worse (barely missing the timing, lack of communication with other bases, etc.)
I’ll think about the slice.  But I don’t see a plausible way to keep it in place suspended away from the moon.  It would have to be propelled exactly so, and it is significantly more likely to float away, fall to Earth, or fall back onto the moon (which may be fine for my story).


Mr. Ask

[Damateur]

The bomber was solely intended as a very minor plot device; a plausible means of creating the slice since it would otherwise be utterly preposterous (instead of just very improbable).

With the changes in Windows, my version of Mathcad stopped working a decade or so ago. Without it, I'd be hard pressed to accurately do the math for the orbital requirements for the moon slice. My original idea was the slice never achieves orbit - it is only propelled to another location on the moon's surface. The safest result is always back onto the moon. Next is away from the Earth & moon but that does reduce the moon's mass and will, most likely, accelerate the moon's slow escape from the Earth. Landing on Earth gets us an extinction level event due to the mass even though it is not moving all that fast (probably).

Remember that people - in spite of their plans - can be a part of "fate". In my idea above, the bomber intended to just destroy the antimatter containment unit and planned for it as a sphere. Instead, with too little explosive for the torus, the bomber tries what seems to him to be the next best idea which results in the slice. A more intelligent bomber would have placed the explosive along the inside of the torus (in the donut's hole) or just in one or two spots on the torus. Those would have caused a more immediate catastrophic failure. But the bomber tries to be clever in spite of not actually being clever and causes something odd to happen.

All that being said, this is your story and you need to use, modify, or ignore what you choose.