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| Survival Story |
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| Dying is Not an Option! |
We were exploring Copernicus Crater on the moon. We first took the Lunar Rover Vehicle (LRV), which is also called a moon buggy to the edge of the crater. There were two of us on this mission. WE had jet packs just in case we needed them. We were 14 miles from base camp when we had our first problem. We had to get up the side of the crater when one of our instruments said the solar power was low. We had three choices, to go on, to turn back or fix the problem. Audrey said, "Let's fix the problem by going around to the west side to get more solar power. We'll also turn the panels more to collect more sunlight." It worked. After we got to the other side of the crater, we tried getting up the side of the crater. It took a lot of work but we managed. As we were driving up the side of the crater, Lizzy declared, " These are some pretty interesting moon rocks." Finally we got on the top of the edge of the crater. We contacted the base camp. We were headed into the crater. Getting to the bottom of the crater, our moon buggy just died. We were about 14 miles from base with no transportation and only air for 6 hours. We had a 2 hours trip to base because the moon buggy goes about 7 miles an hour. That means we needed to fix the buggy within 3 hours time to give us a little extra time if needed. It would take too much energy to walk that distance and too much time. "What just happened?" Lizzy wondered out loud. " Maybe something popped a hole in a tire." Audrey answered. " If it did, it's a good thing we have spares." Lizzy and Audrey headed to the back to check the tires. They found nothing. "But then again, moon buggy tires should be durable against rocks . So then why would there be a flat tire?" Lizzy asked. Audrey answered her with a shrug. She wondered what could have happened. Just then, as they were wondering, Lizzy questioned, "What if something in the wires or any other part of the moon buggy broke and�" They both considered that it might have been a possibility. As they were checking, Lizzy suggested that they should call back to the base to see if anything was wrong with the system. "Hello, we need a check of the system because it isn't working, over." Lizzy and Audrey said. Emma at the base checked the instruments and answered back, "We think that the buggy blew a fuse. We don't know how it happened, but we also don't know how to fix it. Our rescue ship isn't perfect, some of the side chipped off, and we don't know how else to get to you in time. It would take too long, and it would be risky." "So you're just going to leave us here to die! That isn't fair! Why must the good die young?!" Audrey said dramatically. "Stop being a drama queen." Lizzy said in that sarcastic yet serious yet bored voice. "That's not what I said Audrey! We're still checking on possibilities," Emma said loudly. Just then, we saw a spark come from the underside of the moon buggy and we ran, or should I say bounced, to the buggy to see where the spark came from. It was an hour later and we only 5 hours of air left. We have to start thinking fast. It would be slower but at least it was something. As Audrey and Lizzy tried turning the buggy around, they found it was quite easy once you learned the trick. If you tried lifting it upward it would kinda bounce so they made it bounce and once it was in the air they pushed it in the direction of the most solar power. Once they got into the direction they wanted it, they got in the buggy and tried to see if they could get in to move. It worked! Lizzy didn't think that they should do any exploring except for on the way back up Copernicus. Audrey begged, " But we have been looking forward to do this so much! I'm not leaving without doing any exploring. Please please, please." Lizzy couldn't say no. "Oh all right." "Yes!" Audrey hissed. As they explored, they found some interesting artifacts. Strangely shaped moon rocks. "Audrey, we have to get going! Quick!" Lizzy exclaimed. So she bustled and hustled as fast as she could. As soon as she finished, she hopped in the buggy, and Lizzy drove as fast as they could. Then, Taylor called them this time. " Guys, are you still there? We need you back. Immediately. You only have 1 hour of air left! Hurry!" Taylor said really panicky. "We're on our way. " Lizzy said expertly. We were running out of air and we needed time. "I'm losing hope, Lizzy." Audrey said pathetically Finally the base came into view. We had 10 minutes of air. 5 minutes of air. 3 minutes of air. We reached camp at last. 0 minutes of air. We held our breath and got inside the base. We sucked in air. It was good to be back. As we ate, we told all about our adventure and surviving in this harsh environment and how dying was not an option. |