Earth Era

Zhao Lan is the discoverer of this quasar. Zhao Lan still remembers that time, when he entered his father's research institute for the first time, perhaps because his father thought he was too naughty to prevent him from affecting his work, so his father gave him a technically processed After that, I told myself that if I could find the fifty hidden spots of light, my father would take me to the playground on weekends to play.

But Zhao Lan searched and found only forty-nine. That remaining spot of light could never be found no matter what. In order to let her always busy father take time to take her to the playground, the young Zhao Lan refused to admit defeat and sat on the ground, looking for the photo all morning, line by line, pixel by pixel A pixel seek. Finally, in a corner of a certain row and a certain column, Zhao Lan found a spot of light that was slightly brighter than the surrounding pixels.

That's a very small difference, if Zhao Lan hadn't calmed down and kept looking for it, Zhao Lan would not have discovered it. Zhao Lan, who found this spot of light, excitedly told his father about the discovery. Perhaps because he couldn't bear to dampen his enthusiasm, his father still used his work authority to point the observation angle of the telescope at the bright spot shown in the photo. , so...he really discovered a distant and ancient quasar.

This quasar is too far away. Although it is extremely powerful, the light it emits after a long journey of 10 billion light years, and when it reaches the earth, it can only be enhanced by only one spot on the plate of the high-precision telescope. The brightness of the pixel. This difference is so small that even the electronic program ignores it, and just regards it as a product of light pollution or gravitational lens, without analyzing it in detail. But it didn't miss Zhao Lan's search. It was Zhao Lan's work that morning that added another number to the star list of human civilization.

As promised, his father led Zhao Lan to the playground for a whole day, and Zhao Lan's door to the world of astronomy was also opened. It was precisely because of this incident that Zhao Lan later embarked on the same path as his father and became an astronomer.

At this moment, more than 20 years have passed since this incident, and her father, who was strong and energetic in the past, has already passed away because of illness, but this incident has been buried deep in Zhao Lan's memory. This quasar means a lot to Zhao Lan. It not only means the dream of childhood, but also means the loving and generous eyes of the father.

but now. It disappeared under Zhao Lan's gaze, without any warning, just like when his father left him.

Zhao Lan left her office, and after reporting the matter to the person in charge of the observation base, Zhao Lan got a higher authority to call a higher usage share of the survey telescope. In addition to observations in the optical band, Zhao Lan also obtained permission to use telescopes in gamma rays, soft X-rays, hard X-rays, and infrared bands.

Zhao Lan can be sure that the position and direction parameters he entered into the telescope console are absolutely correct. But no matter what type of observation. All that is returned is blank, all black. All the observation results clearly told Zhao Lan that there is no object in that direction that can be detected by human civilization.

But... Zhao Lan's previous observation records clearly recorded that there was clearly a quasar in that direction and at that position. Even, just two hours ago, Zhao Lan was still there. Staring at it obsessively.

The vastness and depth of the universe made Zhao Lan feel powerless. When all Zhao Lan's search attempts failed. Zhao Lan even wanted to go to that place to take a look in person, to see what happened there, and what kind of existence could swallow a powerful quasar. But Zhao Lan knew it clearly. The term ten billion light-years does not only mean the distance in space, it also means the distance in time. Ten billion light-years would mean. From there the light transmitted to the earth was emitted ten billion years ago. Even if I can reach that position, I don't have the ability to go back to ten billion years ago...

What exactly happened in the universe?

Obviously, it is impossible for a powerful quasar to disappear for no reason. Quasars consist of a supermassive black hole at the center and an accretion disk orbiting it, bound by its powerful gravity. The diameter of a quasar is only a few light-days, but its radiation power is much stronger than that of the Milky Way with a diameter of 100,000 light-years. Its radiation power comes from the mutual collision and friction of accretion disk materials, whether it is radiation in the visible light band or radiation in other bands.

Then, of course, a quasar will "die". When it finally devours the matter in the accretion disk surrounding itself, the central black hole will quiet down and no longer emit those radiations. Naturally, people cannot observe it. It's just... It only took ten minutes for this quasar to go from normal luminosity to complete disappearance... How could it complete the long journey from healthy to dead?

This is absolutely impossible. But why did it disappear?

Zhao Lan finally gave up on continuing to search. Zhao Lan left the operating room. I wrote the observation log in my office, recorded what I saw and heard today, and then went back to prepare for a rest.

"Maybe a cloud of dust happened to pass by there, and then blocked the radiation of this quasar." Zhao Lan thought this way, comforting herself, "I think it will only take a few days at most, and the cloud of dust will will drift away, and this quasar will reappear."

It is not uncommon for stars to disappear due to dust clouds in the universe. One of the most obvious examples is that humans have been unable to see the core of the Milky Way in the visible light band until now because of the obstruction of dust clouds. However, if the quasar disappeared because of the occlusion of the dust cloud, then its situation is different from that of the core of the Milky Way. Obviously, the dust cloud did not block the quasar before, but now it blocks, so it must have motion. And if it has motion, then it must continue to move until it leaves the occluded path.

However, this explanation also has some loopholes. Because the blocking of the dust cloud is unlikely to block the radiation in all bands, and now, no matter what kind of telescope Zhao Lan uses, he cannot see this quasar.

"Continue to wait for a while." Zhao Lan thought so.

Then Zhao Lan waited for more than a month. For more than a month, Zhao Lan took time out to observe this quasar every day. But Zhao Lan still got nothing. With nothing to do, Zhao Lan could only write a work report. Submitted this report to the Central Academy of Sciences, hoping to use the power of the Central Academy of Sciences to find a reasonable explanation for this matter.

After this matter was temporarily over, Zhao Lan received another message from Xu Ming, the person in charge of Mars Port.

"Ms. Zhao Lan, hello, according to the requirements of the current laws of human civilization, I'm here to update you on the latest developments in the theft of your Silvia spaceship."

Xu Ming's appearance didn't change much, but the hair on his head became thinner. It seems that Xu Ming has been devastated by the theft of the spaceship during this period of time.

"After a large number of investigations with our joint government departments, we have basically determined that Li Yunfan did this." Xu Ming said with a wry smile, "Because we discovered some of Li Yunfan's unique crime methods inside Mars Port, And some marks that he left on purpose to declare his identity. Yes, Li Yunfan stole your spaceship, but we still don't know the specific reason."

"And the department responsible for tracking the whereabouts of the spacecraft has not made much progress. We have done a lot of work and finally locked the place where the spacecraft last appeared, which is only three million kilometers away from the earth. The monitoring range of No. 08 Space Base is now. Any flight instruments entering and exiting the earth from this direction will be inspected and recorded by No. 108 Space Base. But No. 108 Base has not recorded any data about your spacecraft. In After that period of time, all the recording devices in our civilization have not seen your spaceship again. In other words, after the Silvia spaceship arrived near the No. 108 observation base... it suddenly disappeared. No one knows Where did it go. No one knows exactly what kind of means Li Yunfan used to do this. Several months have passed, and we still can't trace any clues."

When I heard what Xu Ming said. Zhao Lan's heart moved slightly. Because Zhao Lan discovered that there seemed to be something in common between the Silvia spacecraft and the disappearance of the quasar. The common point is that both of them disappeared suddenly and inexplicably. With the power of human civilization, it is impossible to find any reasonable explanation for this disappearance.

But Zhao Lan later dismissed this idea. If there is any connection between a quasar 10 billion light years away and a small modern spaceship of human civilization, this is the most incredible thing.

"It's probably a coincidence," Zhao Lan thought.

"We are still investigating this matter, but let me say this in a private capacity. Ms. Zhao Lan, you should stop having any illusions about retrieving your spaceship report." Xu Ming said. "Li Yunfan is too elusive, unless he shows up by himself, we probably won't be able to catch him..."

"Okay." Zhao Lan replied, "I know it's not your fault. As long as you finally compensate my new spaceship, I promise not to pursue this matter any further."

Although he felt sorry for the theft of the Silvia spaceship, Zhao Lan was an easy-going person and didn't want to embarrass Xu Ming too much.

"Thank you for your cooperation." After a communication delay, Xu Ming's figure appeared on the communication device again, and bowed to Zhao Lan again and again: "We will definitely deliver the new spaceship to you as soon as possible."

After a pause, Xu Ming continued hesitantly: "Ms. Zhao Lan, there is one thing we think we should tell you in advance...that is...you are famous."

"Me? Am I famous?" Zhao Lan felt a little baffled by this sentence.

Xu Ming smiled wryly and said: "Ms. Zhao Lan, you know, as the most legendary thief, Li Yunfan has many fanatical fans and a high degree of attention in our society. Anyone who has a relationship with Li Yunfan They will all receive public attention. It’s the same now, the fact that Li Yunfan used all sorts of incredible means to finally steal one of your ordinary spaceships has been dug up by the media... and it has been reported and spread to the society. You know , this is the first time that Li Yunfan has had a relationship with a young, outstanding and beautiful lady like you, and since you are the only direct descendant of Zhao Huasheng, the savior of mankind, your status is also quite special...so now, in society, There have been many speculations about the relationship between you and Li Yunfan, you are now... more famous than a star."

"Which media reported on this incident and mentioned my name?" Zhao Lan suddenly burst into anger: "I'm going to the court to sue them for violating my right to privacy!"

Li Yunfan is a very legendary thief. Until now, except for this name, all personal information about Li Yunfan has not been leaked. Each of the cases he has done is incredible and earth-shattering, but these cases have one thing in common, that is, these cases are not harmful to society, and no one has suffered because of these cases of Li Yunfan. Strictly speaking, Li Yunfan's cases are more like pranks. One is because of the mystery, and the other is because of the entertainment of pranks, Li Yunfan naturally has a very high reputation, and even has many fanatical fans and admirers. Under such circumstances, Zhao Lan was implicated, and it became a very natural thing for Li Yunfan to be paid attention to by the public.

"This matter is also due to our improper handling of confidentiality measures." Xu Ming continued with a wry smile, "We will cooperate with your accusation and provide you with all the evidence you need for the accusation. At the same time, because of our work mistakes And for the troubles we have caused you, we will also give you proper compensation..." (to be continued~^~)

PS:  Well... a chapter of 4,000 words. . Today is still only this update. Rainbow swears that tomorrow's update will be released at a fixed time, that is, at 12 o'clock and 7 o'clock! ! ! Rainbow swear!