Patrice Gailart, astrophysicist at University of California -- Santa Cruz, is leading an evening class on Mount Hamilton using the Shane telescope at the Lick Observatory. She and her students are to observe Pluto and its main moon, Charon. But they watch in horror as both Pluto and Charon are destroyed right before their eyes. The current date is August 1st, 2024. Patrice discovers that a four foot diameter black hole with one and a half times the mass of Saturn is the culprit. She asks the obvious, "Trajectory. Is it coming at us?" Her responsibility is to alert the world. But on almost the same day, the Supreme Court rules the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, excluding nearly seventy-five million people from government provided health care. The lack of health care dominates the news cycle. Although a few scientists and experts heed Patrice's warnings, many protest the Supreme Court's decision and some see Patrice as a government hire to scare demonstrators off the streets.
Though this novel is science fiction, it is as much science as it is fiction. Just the occurrence of a real scientific possibility. Questions abound.
Where did this thing come from? Why didn't we see it coming? How much time do we have before it nears Earth? Can we alter its trajectory? What damage could it do? What are gravitational waves? Will this four foot diameter black hole fall into orbit around the sun? Can Earth survive? If so, what of the rest of the solar system? Will it take out the sun? Are we all going to die en masse on the same day? And of all the times for Patrice to come upon a new love interest.
The tension mounts as Dr. Patrice Gailart slowly reasons her way through each question as she and humanity ponders multiple plans. Read the book and you too will be amazed at where the science of our times can lead.