精华区文章阅读

发信人: by (春天的小懒虫), 信区: SFworld
标  题: 2010 (55)
发信站: 哈工大紫丁香 (Wed Oct  6 15:40:11 1999), 转信

                             55
                Lucifer Rising

Fifty times more brilliant than the full Moon, Lucifer had
transformed the skies of Earth, virtually banishing night For
months at a time. Despite its sinister connotations, the name
was inevitable; and indeed `Light-bringer' had brought evil
as well as good. Only the centuries and the millennia would
show in which direction the balance tilted.
  On the credit side, the end of night had vastly extended
the scope of human activity, especially in the less-developed
countries. Everywhere, the need for artificial lighting had
been substantially reduced, with resulting huge savings in
electrical power. It was as if a giant lamp had been hoisted
into space, to shine upon half the globe. Even in daytime
Lucifer was a dazzling object, casting distinct shadows.
  Farmers, mayors, city managers, police, seamen, and
almost all those engaged in outdoor activities - especially in
remote areas - welcomed Lucifer; it had made their lives
much safer and easier. But it was hated by lovers, criminals,
naturalists, and astronomers.
  The first two groups found their activities seriously res-
tricted, while naturalists were concerned about Lucifer's
impact upon animal life. Many nocturnal creatures had been
seriously affected, while others had managed to adapt. The
Pacific grunion, whose celebrated mating pattern was
locked to high tides and moonless nights, was in grave
trouble, and seemed to be heading for rapid extinction.
  And so, it seemed, were Earth-based astronomers. That
was not such a scientific catastrophe as it would once have
been, for more than fifty per cent of astronomical research
depended upon instruments in space or on the Moon. They
could be easily shielded from Lucifer's glare; but terrestrial
observatories were seriously inconvenienced by the new
sun in what had once been the night sky.
  The human race would adapt, as it had done to so many
changes in the past. A generation would soon be born that
had never known a world without Lucifer; but that bright-
est of all stars would be an eternal question to every thinking
man and woman.
  Why had Jupiter been sacrificed - and how long would
the new-sun radiate? Would it burn out quickly, or would it
maintain its power for thousands of years - perhaps for the
lifetime of the human race? Above all, why the interdiction
upon Europa, a world now as cloud-covered as Venus?
  There must be answers to those questions; and Mankind
would never be satisfied until it had found them.

--
           KK   KK    KK    KK     KK    KK
          KK  KK      KK  KK        KK  KK
         KKKK         KKKK           KKKK
        KK  KK        KK  KK          KK  KK
       KK    KK       KK    KK         KK    KK

※ 来源:·BBS 水木清华站 bbs.net.tsinghua.edu.cn·[FROM: 166.111.10.176]

--
:-) Helix@163.NET                                                    85958F57
:-( Helix@KALI.COM.CN                                                208CE12C
                                        简  爱                       CB384F06
                                                                     CC60E9F4
                           你-为-什-么-把-心-给-挖-走-了~~~ ?        54319BC9
                                                                     7EA2D22F

※ 来源:·饮水思源站 bbs.sjtu.edu.cn·[FROM: 202.120.5.220]

--
☆ 来源:．哈工大紫丁香 bbs.hit.edu.cn．[FROM: bingyang.bbs@bbs.sjt]

SFworld 版 (精华区)