Green Light

In the sky, they could see a small green light streaking across the stars. The Hemp Satellite had taken flight thanks to Mr. Fujimoto. On a small table, in the backyard garden of the European Associate, sat a laptop computer displaying the information being relayed from the green light in space.

Henry Bear watched in fascination, from the hill above Terceira, on the Azores Islands of Portugal. Just this evening, he’d been stopped by a raging bull that ran him down the dock. Now, after his introduction to the person he’d hoped to find and a good dinner; they stood observing the Hemp Satellite in real time with their own eyes.

He thought of Jenny Bear at home with their children looking into the sky and seeing the same sight. It had been such a difficult fight to finally own this moment on Earth, as a living human being.

Even better, all of the instruments looked good. The Engineers worried about space radiation on the electrical panel inside the Hemp shell crafted to withstand the rigors of spaceflight better than metal. Hemp Satellites offered the same amount of service time as traditional satellites, only excelled in burning up in the atmosphere with less pollution, and no chance of something landing on Earth.

Cheaper to build, they offered the public a chance to take advantage of a satellite system, that could be diverted safely into the Earth’s atmosphere, at the end of its operational life. This prevented space junk from building up in orbit around the planet. A problem that existed right now, as no mission to seriously clean space junk had taken place yet, with the threat of space exploration ending as a result.

Hemp Satellites cost the same to launch as traditional satellites, for the most part, as they were a little lighter. Henry Bear could attest to that after paying Mr. Fujimoto in full, for this mission.

Only now the European Associate offered a different business model with a launch system tailored to his product. Henry Bear would be able to launch his own Hemp Satellites, and could launch more than one at a time, to keep costs down.

“Sure you don’t want a beer?” Asked the European Associate, extending an arm toward Henry Bear with a glass bottle in his hand. He’d been drinking these bottles of beer since Henry Bear met him at the boat dock. The small island offered a peaceful life and not much to do.

“No thanks, I don’t drink alcohol.”

“Muslim?”

Henry Bear had never been asked that question before. It must be this island, this place, so close to Islam.

“No, I’m Native American.”

“Red, White and Blue huh, need to drink Budweiser or something?”

“No,” Henry Bear said laughing. “I’m Native American, pow wows and drum circles. Before the white man. Native American.”

“Really. Never met a Native America before. Just Americans.”

The two looked skyward again at the little green light. Soon it would start bending around the Earth and vanish from sight, as it made another lap around the planet, passing Jenny Bear in their home.

“Well Henry Bear, you’re Hemp Satellite looks like it could be a winner. To be honest though, you really need to test this for another year or more, just to be safe. We wouldn’t want to launch a lot of these into space and then find something wrong with it. That’s what Mr. Fujumoto said. He might even share innovations he’s discovered with his bamboo satellite tests.”

“That’s what Mr. Fujimoto said? He’s probably right. Hoped things might move as fast as that green light up there in the heavens. Only I’ve become accustomed to setbacks and delays. Just hope the Pandemic subsides. Your island here is lucky, no masks.” Said Henry Bear.

“Yeah, think we’re all hoping this Pandemic ends soon. Not much need for satellites if people are sick on the ground.”

At that moment, Mr. Sinclair called Henry Bear’s phone with an urgent message.

To be continued…