Chapter 175: Approximate Location

As the human social system underwent its massive overhaul, the interior modification of the spaceship proceeded without a hitch.

Massive smelting centers worked overtime to purify mineral ores, simultaneously utilizing their stockpiled steel and alloys to repair the Noah’s honeycomb structure.

They only needed to repair specific sections; some of the colossal cavities were intentionally left untouched. According to the Federation’s top biologists, the vast, interconnected gaps between the upper, middle, and lower decks of the Ark were perfect for cultivating large-scale ecosystems. To achieve this, a team of ecologists had drafted detailed terraforming plans. If their proposed technologies could be successfully implemented, the interior of the Noah might even develop real clouds and natural precipitation!

While the ecosystem underwent these significant upgrades, various functional sectors were also being rebuilt. Beyond the existing residential and industrial zones, new commercial hubs, entertainment districts, and educational campuses were under construction.

Jason sat in the captain’s quarters, reviewing a progress report. The construction of the geothermal power plant near the artificial magma zone was also proceeding smoothly.

The engineering teams had encountered numerous hurdles. The magma pool was located in a high-gravity zone, requiring vast amounts of new, heat-resistant materials. The extreme temperatures caused the construction robots to frequently break down.

Despite these setbacks, the first experimental geothermal power plant was completed in just three months.

This initial facility had a generating capacity of roughly two megawatts.

A sense of gentle relief and joy filled Jason’s heart. He wasn’t the only one; everyone in the ship was thrilled about the new power plant. The magma, a byproduct left behind by the supernova explosion, was a precious energy reserve. It was abundant, and tapping into it provided immense benefits. In space, you could never have too much energy. With enough power, they could synthesize the essential resources they desperately lacked.

For instance, oxygen could be extracted from metallic oxides, and hydrogen, the most abundant element in the universe was incredibly easy to harvest. Combine the two, and they had water. Through various chemical and physical processes, as long as they had the energy to burn, they could synthesize scarce necessities like water, fertilizers, and organic matter.

Jason set the engineering reports aside, signing off with an “approved” or “agreed” on the ones that required his authorization. Next, he turned his attention to the reports from the Scientists.

The contents weren’t particularly shocking, but the sheer volume was impressive. The citizens now enjoyed a stable research environment, free from the threat of hostile aliens or existential disasters, allowing a continuous stream of new studies to emerge. Humanity finally had the luxury of time to conduct proper scientific research.

Setting aside the minor breakthroughs, one specific report caught Jason’s eye. It was from an astronomy team that had roughly calculated the Noah’s current trajectory.

Jason’s heart skipped a beat. This was crucial information. Drifting aimlessly through the void without a planetary resource base was far too dangerous.

The old solar system had been located on the Orion Arm, situated roughly between the Sagittarius and Perseus arms, a relatively remote and desolate region of the galaxy. According to the team’s calculations, the Ark was currently hurtling toward the Scutum-Centaurus Arm.

And that happened to be heading directly toward the Galactic Center!

At their current velocity, it would likely take the Noah one to two thousand years to reach the Centaurus Arm. Factoring in the effects of relativistic time dilation, the crew would only experience between two and four hundred years.

Reading this, Jason frowned. He immediately sensed a problem.

Even a few centuries was simply too long!

Whether they were heading toward the Orion Arm or the Centaurus Arm didn’t actually matter to him. His primary concern was whether they would intercept a star or a rogue planet along the way. Where there were stars, there were usually planets. As long as they could find a terrestrial world, they could harvest its raw materials, permanently solving their resource and energy crises.

Their current resource bottleneck was eerily similar to the struggles the Viridians had faced.

The Noah’s trajectory was essentially a straight line. With humanity’s current technological limits, they could only make microscopic course corrections using nuclear detonations or by deliberately venting mass into space to alter their momentum.

If their current path happened to graze a star system, it would be a stroke of luck. They could simply decelerate and navigate toward a habitable planet.

However, if their trajectory missed the nearest star by even 0.1 or 0.01 light-years, human technology would be utterly useless in bridging the gap. A deviation of just 0.01 light-years meant the Noah would be forced to coast through the void for centuries or millennia. Whether they wanted to admit it or not, it was a harsh reality they had to accept.

“The odds of a star system sitting perfectly in our flight path are practically zero.”

Jason knew it was a long shot. While the Milky Way contained billions of stars, the vast majority were clustered near the Galactic Center. The stellar density in their current local arm was less than 0.001 stars per cubic light-year. How could humanity possibly get that lucky?

Therefore, the most viable solution was to use a precisely calculated nuclear detonation to slightly alter the Noah’s course, aiming it toward the nearest star system.

But… changing course at near-light speeds was incredibly difficult. They couldn’t use a massive nuclear warhead, because the Noah’s anomalous physical properties would cause the entire vessel to violently decelerate in response to a massive impact.

“This is a real headache…” He rubbed his temples and continued reading the report.

Because the Noah was traveling near the speed of light, any scientific instruments deployed outside the hull were instantly pulverized by high-speed cosmic particles, turning into space dust. Even if they mounted a probe on the rear of the Ark with heavy shielding, it would only survive slightly longer before being destroyed by the intense gamma radiation trailing the ship.

The scientists had tried numerous methods to observe the outside universe. However, after losing one of their primary radio telescopes, the results were dismal.

The rear-facing telescopes could only observe the stars fading behind them, leaving them completely blind to what lay ahead on their flight path.

Consequently, the astronomy team could only estimate their location based on archived star charts. Roughly 21.3 light-years away from their current position was a star system designated 187J3X1, which was known to host four planets.

If the Noah maintained its current heading, their closest approach would be approximately 0.67 light-years.

A gap of 0.67 light-years was still insurmountable!

Jason scowled. Rough estimates were completely useless in this scenario. If their calculations were off by even 0.01 light-years, the distance would still far exceed their maximum travel range.

Reading further, he finally understood what the science team was proposing. They wanted to deploy the Gravitational Wave Telescope to take precise measurements before drafting a course correction plan!

Unlike optical instruments, the Gravitational Wave Telescope didn’t rely on linear light. It detected the omnipresent ripples in spacetime, allowing it to easily “see” through the interference and the physical mass of the Noah.

But… wasn’t that incredibly risky? What if this irreplaceable technology was shredded by relativistic particles?

Even the Gravitational Wave Telescope couldn’t peer through the universe from deep inside the Noah; its sensors had to be exposed to the vacuum of space. If it sustained damage, human engineers lacked the knowledge to repair it. If it broke, it was gone forever!

Jason’s expression darkened with uncertainty. He couldn’t make a reckless decision.

“No. We need to develop advanced, high-strength ablative shielding first to guarantee its safety. Under no circumstances can we risk losing the Gravitational Wave Telescope!”

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