We found this asteroid at a distance of 1.8 thousand kilometers from the earth. Its diameter is about 10 km, showing an irregular oval shape. It rotates very slowly, and many small pieces on the surface reflect sunlight like blinking. The computer on the spaceship shows that its orbit intersects with the earth. 18 days later, this space boulder will fall near the Gulf of Mexico!
The earth's monitoring system should have noticed it a year ago, but we haven't heard anything about it yet. We contacted the earth, and after the due delay of 5 seconds, there was still silence in the earphone. We tried many times and got no answer, as if the whole human world was shocked. Just ten minutes ago, we were talking to the earth. This incident shocked us more than the appearance of asteroids.
Twenty days ago, Emma and I rented this small spaceship to spend our honeymoon in space. This is an old-fashioned ship.
Traditional power spacecraft, this snail-like antique looks very romantic and romantic in the era of space navigation time-space transformation. We visited the space city in synchronous orbit, went to the moon, and then flew over one million kilometers from the moon. The whole trip was as romantic and smooth as an idyll. But just as we were about to return, everything suddenly became so weird.
But the asteroid is 50 kilometers ahead of us, protruding from the dark background of space, as realistic as an exhibit on black velvet, and I'm sure I'm not having a nightmare.
? We must do something! ? I said.
As before, once I decide to take action, Emma can always figure out the details of the action: we can launch an engine from the spacecraft to it, which will make it off track. ?
Computer simulation shows that this is feasible, but it must be completed within 24 minutes. If the asteroid moves forward a little longer, it will be too late.
We don't hesitate any more. We drove the spacecraft to a safe distance from the asteroid 100 km, and then gave instructions to the computer. An engine at the tail of the spacecraft was separated from the hull. Through the porthole, we saw a light blue flame flying from the tail of the small cylinder to the asteroid. The flame quickly turned into a shining little star, and we held our breath and watched it hit a boulder floating in space. After a flash of bright light, a fireball appeared from the asteroid and expanded rapidly, as if a sun suddenly appeared in front of us in space. Just when the fireball seemed to engulf our spaceship, it stopped expanding, contracted sharply and disappeared. Asteroids appear in space again, and it can be clearly seen that the exploding engine has blown a hole in it. According to the proportion, the diameter of this pit is at least three kilometers. There are many small light spots scattered radially on the asteroid. These light spots are rock fragments that have been blown up, and one of them is very close to the spacecraft. At this time, the computer is re-measuring the orbit of the asteroid, and we are waiting nervously.
? If the orbit change is successful, the asteroid will not hit the earth's surface, but will be captured by the earth in an orbit of 58037 kilometers and become an earth satellite. ?
Emma and I embraced excitedly. Will the ship leasing company let us pay for the engine? Emma asked half jokingly.
? How dare they make this request to the savior? Moreover, we have the ownership of this asteroid, and the mineral deposits on it will make us billionaires! ?
With the joy and pride of the savior, we flew to the earth with the rest of the engine. But when we contacted the earth again, there was still no reply, which made our hearts hang up again. We really can't imagine what happened in our world.
Because there is only one engine, our spacecraft accelerates very slowly, and the asteroid catches up with the spacecraft and soon disappears in the direction of the earth. Emma, who has been observing asteroids on the screen, suddenly exclaimed: Oh, my God, the earth! Look at the earth! ! ?
I look at the earth. At this distance, it is only as big as a baseball. Looking at the crystal blue sphere, I didn't find anything unusual. Emma showed me the enlarged image on the screen. After I glanced at it, I was immediately shocked: all the continents on the earth have become shapes I have never seen before.
We turned to the computer and got this answer:? What we are seeing now is the continental form and distribution of the earth in the late Cretaceous, the largest of which is Gondwana. ?
? Cretaceous? How long before now? ! ?
? About 65 million years. However, your formulation of this question may be wrong. There are indications that it is Cretaceous. ?
The computer is right. Now we understand why there is silence in the direction of the earth, because humans have not yet appeared.
In our time, human beings use time-space transition to navigate interstellar space. Every time a starship is launched, it will leave one or more space-time holes at the launch point. These holes float in the space around the earth. If the interplanetary spacecraft accidentally strays into it, it will be thrown into the distance of tens of thousands of light years in an instant, and time will jump forward or backward for a long time. Later, the cavity left by the improved starship eliminates the space and is only temporal, which means that through such a cavity, your spatial position will not change, but time jump will occur. The danger of this void is greatly reduced. If you accidentally get in, just drive back along the original route and go in the opposite direction again, and you will return to the original time accurately.
We just strayed into such a time hole and didn't feel anything at all.
Accidents that mistakenly enter the wormhole of time happen from time to time, but all the spacecraft that jump backwards come back. One of the planetary mining spacecraft actually jumped into the CAMBRIAN, and the astronauts saw a dark red earth. The ocean had not yet appeared, and magma was flowing through the land. None of the spacecraft that jumped into the future came back, which made people look forward to a bright future optimistically.
However, the earth government is most concerned about jumping into the past. There are strict laws and regulations that a spaceship that has strayed into a wormhole must return. If it can't return because of the wormhole drift (which is very unlikely), it must sail far enough away from the earth to self-destruct to avoid changing the history of the earth.
? Oh, my God, what have we done? ! ? Emma exclaimed, and my heart sank to the bottom. In the blink of an eye, we went from savior to devil.
? Don't be afraid, dear, not every disturbance can trigger the butterfly effect. ? I comforted her.
? Disturbing what we are doing is still called disturbing? She suddenly remembered something and asked the computer: This is the late Cretaceous?
The computer gave a positive answer. We all know that we just pushed away an asteroid that destroyed dinosaurs.
After a long silence, Emma whispered, Let's go home. ? So we turned the course so that the ship could follow the original road accurately.
? Go back and do what? On trial? I said with a sigh.
? That's the best result. If there are judges and humans, we will be relieved when we die. ?
I smiled and shook my head. Your worry is unnecessary, Emma. Have you ever wondered why human civilization is far ahead of other species on earth? Why do animals like ants or dolphins have a certain social structure or intelligence, but the degree of civilization is not even a fraction of ours? You know, the chances of species evolution are equal. ?
? Why?
? Because human beings are the spirit of all things, the universe has chosen us. Our civilization has developed to the present, and this confidence should be there! The world we are going back to may not be the same as when we came, but there must be human beings and civilization! ?
Emma smiled too. I forgot, you are a believer in the anthropic principle. She drew a cross on her chest. I hope so. ?
When we cross the time hole again, we feel that the universe has disappeared and reappeared. This process is extremely short, just like the blink of an eye in space. No wonder I didn't notice it when I passed by last time. At the moment we passed through the wormhole, there was a noisy radio signal from the direction of the silent earth, but our excitement immediately turned into disappointment. Those signals sound like low chirp, which is completely incomprehensible to us and the computer. We called to the earth, but there was still no response. Looking at the image of the earth on the monitor screen, the mainland has returned to our familiar appearance, which makes me somewhat relieved: if there is a butterfly effect, it will not be turned upside down.
Our small spaceship flew to the earth with only one engine and entered low earth orbit two days later. There is only enough fuel left on the ship for us to land. We landed in the Pacific Ocean near Australia, and the spaceship soon sank. We floated on the sea in a small life raft. It was early in the morning and the sun had not yet risen. I look around, the sea is a familiar sea, and the sky is a familiar day. Nothing seems to have changed in the world.
After drifting at sea for half an hour, we saw a big ship in the distance. We fired a distress flare and the ship came in this direction.
? Ah, there are really human beings! ? Emma shouted, and tears of excitement welled up in her eyes.
? I said, human beings are the spirit of all things, and they will climb to the top of the earth civilization forever. ? I said.
? But the world now is definitely not the world when we set out. Judging from the appearance of the spacecraft, human beings may not have entered the era of science and technology. ? Emma said with some fear.
The shape of that ship is very old, and it is definitely not a ship in the modern world where we lived, but this does not mean that the world is backward in technology. I noticed that the ship had no sail and I didn't know what power to use.
The boat approached us, stopped, put down a rope ladder from the side of the boat, and Emma and I climbed onto the boat along the rope ladder. We saw that the crew were all dark-skinned, unable to tell what race they were, wearing rough clothes, and had a sense of vicissitudes. I spoke to them, but they didn't answer. One of them motioned us to go with him.
We climbed the long steps and came to a tower-shaped building in the middle of the ship, which was the commanding height of the whole ship. The sailor took us to a strong old man with a silver beard and said a word to us. We didn't understand his language, but the computer I wore on my chest did. It said: This is a language similar to ancient Latin. Although there are some differences, it is also understandable. This is our captain. ? The captain also said something to us. How dare you drift in the sea alone? Not afraid of being eaten? ! ?
? Eat it? With what? I asked puzzled, and the computer translated my words.
The captain pointed to the sea in front of him. At this time, the sun has risen, and the thin morning fog on the sea scatters a yellow sunlight. At this moment, I saw a big wave coming out of the calm sea just now, and it soon burst. A huge monster jumped out of the sea, and then another one appeared. With the sound of water, a large group of monsters soon appeared on the sea. Now, Emma and I both understand the consequences of what we did 65 million years ago.
Dinosaurs live to this day.
A dinosaur swam to our boat and stopped beside it. Its huge body is like a terrible mountain peak. We are all in the shadow of the top of the mountain. Under the gray greasy skin, I saw black blood criss-crossing the gray peaks like vines. The dinosaur's thick neck leaned forward, its huge head hung over our heads, and the sea poured onto the deck like a rainstorm. Those huge strange eyes stared at us, and our blood almost froze under those cold eyes. Emma trembled and held me tight.
? Don't be afraid, it won't hurt anyone. This is the zoo. ? Said the captain.
Sure enough, the dinosaur stared at us for a while, turned and swam away, and the surge it aroused hit the ship's side hard, making it shake. At this time, we saw a big ship like this on the sea in the distance, and two dinosaurs were swimming towards it.
? You domesticated dinosaurs? ! It's amazing! ? Emma said excitedly.
I am also very excited: yes, we thought that the survival of dinosaurs would pose a threat to human evolution, but now it seems that this has made human civilization stronger! ?
Emma nodded. Yes! Dinosaurs are obviously better at working for human beings than cows and horses. They can move a mountain easily! Honey, you're right, man is the spirit of everything! From then on, I am also a believer in the principle of anthropic selection! ?
The computer translated everything we said, and the captain looked at us blankly and seemed a little confused. This is the zoo. They won't hurt anyone. ? He whispered again.
At this time, I made another amazing discovery: at the junction of the sky and the sea, there is a tall pillar. The height of those huge columns is amazing, and white clouds are floating around their waists. From here, we are like ants looking at a big forest. I asked the captain what it was.
? Buildings, tall buildings on the shore. ? The captain said flatly.
? God, how tall is that building? Emma exclaimed.
? There are ten thousand people as tall as you. ? Said the captain.
? A tall building of more than 10 thousand meters? How many floors is that building? I asked.
The captain shook his head. No, it's only about one hundred stories. ?
? So each floor is several hundred meters high? ! What a magnificent palace! ? Emma is sincerely impressed.
? Great civilization, great human civilization! ! ? I cheered.
? Those tall buildings were built by tourists. ? Said the captain.
? Tourists? Yes, you said it was a zoo, but are you a tourist? You are obviously not a tourist. ? I asked.
? Maybe it's still early. The zoo is not open yet. ? Emma said.
The captain looked at us with surprised eyes, and then turned to look at the dinosaurs on the distant sea. His actions give us an ominous feeling, and these dull expressions of human beings also confuse us. At this time, there was a roar from the dinosaur group, which we felt very familiar with. This is the sound we heard from the radio waves of the earth in space. Looking at the tens of thousands of meters high building, my mind exploded with thunder, and Emma collapsed to the ground with a scream. She must know all this as well as I do.
The universe didn't choose humans. In our time, the peak of human civilization on the earth is just an accidental opportunity, and we regard it as inevitable with human conceit. Now, the coin of evolution thrown by nature has turned to the other side.
We are indeed in the zoo of earth civilization, but dinosaurs are tourists.
My legs are weak, and Emma and I are sitting on the deck. The world in front of me was dark, and I only heard the computer translating the captain's words. You look exquisite. Stay with us and you will be approved as an audience. ?
? Look at people? I asked blankly, and the world in front of me gradually became clear. I saw the huge city where the sea and the sky meet, and heard Emma mutter: No, I want to go ashore.
? Are you out of your mind? ! When you land, you become a vegetable! ?
? Vegetable man?
? It's a foodie. That city supplies thousands of foodies every day! Only by being a spectator in the zoo can we not be eaten, which is the goal pursued by everyone. ?
At this time, the whole world seems to have turned into a gloomy ice room, and we are completely desperate. I have lost confidence in living and started to plan how to end my life, but Emma suddenly pointed to the sky and said loudly, Look! ?
It is a bright star, which just disappeared in the morning sunshine, and now it can be seen clearly. It runs so fast that it can be clearly seen moving in the air. If you look carefully, it is not only a light spot, but also shows a certain size.
? That's the magic star. The captain said that one of the tourists, a scientist, said that we studied it carefully and determined that this star came directly to the earth a long time ago. The savior pushed it away with a strong explosion, saving the ancestors of tourists from extinction. Now, there is a pit on the surface of the magic star. Look at the captain pointing to the huge city in the distance, pointing to the tallest spire building in the city. That's the cathedral, where tourists worship the savior. ?
? Do you know our origin?
The captain shook his head. He's not interested. Curiosity belongs only to the peak species. They have no curiosity, just as ants and bees have no curiosity about our world.
I said, for Emma and myself, and maybe those who can't understand me: the fate of evolution is cold. Humans are born lucky, but they don't know it. But now, we still have more opportunities than ants and bees. We should seize these opportunities and not give in to fate. ?
Emma said, yes, since we changed the history of the earth unintentionally, let's change it again. ?
I looked at the cathedral towering into the sky in the distance, and then pointed to the dinosaurs on the sea and asked the captain: They? Those tourists worship the savior, don't they?
The captain nodded. For them, the savior is supreme. ?
Emma and I connected to the computer on our chest through the retina screen to search the ship's navigation records. We found that the process of asteroid changing orbit 65 million years ago, including data and images, was completely recorded.
? Can you speak their language? Emma asked the captain, who nodded.
? That's good. How about that? I said,? Tell them that we are the saviors who pushed away the magic star, and we can show them the exact evidence. ?
The captain and crew stared at us blankly.
? Hurry up! I'll tell you another story about human beings later. Now please tell them what I said quickly! ?
The captain made a trumpet with his hand over his mouth and shouted at the dinosaurs. Compared with the roar of dinosaurs, his voice is so thin and weak that it is hard to believe that it is the same language.
But the dinosaurs stopped playing at the same time, turned to us together, and then swam to our big ship.