The New Satellite by Vargo Statten

# The New Satellite by Vargo Statten

A science fiction novella set in 1970. Following a catastrophic global earthquake on February 9th, Mount Wilson Observatory astronomers Dr. Willoughby and Garside discover that Mercury has turned red, cracked apart, and vanished entirely, causing a gravitational imbalance throughout the Solar System. While the world reels from disaster, pilot Frank Hurst and co-pilot Dick Meredith observe the Moon exhibiting the same ominous crimson coloration and surface fracturing. Hurst theorizes the red color presages planetary disintegration. An emergency radio broadcast warns the Moon faces imminent breakdown, forcing the aircraft to race toward base. As they approach Britain, the Moon catastrophically breaks apart, with massive fragments drawn toward Earth by gravity, creating a crisis scenario of potential impact and devastation.