Back To The Moon Part 10

Xiang and many in the room nodded.

"Okay, then. Let's use the same frequency and the most powerful transmitter we've got to send them a message telling them that help is on the way."

Rowan asked, "But if they are on the far side, how will they even receive the message? And if they do, how will we know they did? For that matter, how do we know that they haven't already decided to kill themselves?"

"We have to try," Stetson answered. His face was grim. "I hope I don't land and find only bodies."

"Wait a minute," one of the communications engineers said. "We get weak signals from the Pioneers and Voyagers all the time. We can can hear their low-power transmitters. You just have to know what frequency to listen to and when to point the Big Dish. If we need to, we could set up an interferometer out at the VLA. The SETI guys are probably all over this." hear their low-power transmitters. You just have to know what frequency to listen to and when to point the Big Dish. If we need to, we could set up an interferometer out at the VLA. The SETI guys are probably all over this."

"What is the Big Dish?" Xiang asked.

"It's a nickname." Bill smiled. "Arecibo, Puerto Rico. That's where the National Science Foundation runs the largest single-dish radio receiver in the world. If they can get line-of-sight with even their low-power transmitter, then we will pick it up."

The engineer continued. "And Arecibo can also broadcast. They once sent a megawatt signal into deep s.p.a.ce for Carl Sagan. The Moon is so close, if they've got a receiver and aren't totally blocked by the ma.s.s of the Moon, they'll hear it."

"That's right. I seem to recall that Sagan thing back when I was a kid," Stetson added as he thought about the problem. "Can't we also use the Deep s.p.a.ce Network? Arecibo will only work when the dish has line-of-sight with the Moon. As we rotate away from the Moon, we won't be able to listen or receive. By tying in the three DSN antennas-in California, Spain, and Australia-we should have coverage all the time."

"I dunno, Bill," Rowan replied, his face showing extreme skepticism. "So, we're going to listen for a message from people who may be dead, and if they aren't, their extremely weak radio signal will be blocked by the ma.s.s of the Moon, making it impossible for us to hear them? And while we're doing that at the Very Large Array and the Deep s.p.a.ce Network, we're going to blast a message to them with the Arecibo antenna telling them help is on the way. And, oh yes, they probably won't hear that message because the Moon is blocking our signal as well. Good plan, Bill."

"Right." Stetson leaned forward toward Rowan and smiled as best he could. "Yes, I think that summarizes it nicely."

"Bill, if it were anyone but you, I'd tell them where to shove this part of the plan. But I won't. We'll make it happen," Rowan said.

d.a.m.n right you will, Bill thought to himself. Bill thought to himself.

"There's another problem." Xiang was speaking again. "By the time you get to the Moon, it will be night."

The implication of this statement was not lost to most of the s.p.a.ce scientists and engineers in the room. Xiang continued.

"The Moon rotates more slowly than the Earth, completing one full revolution every twenty-eight Earth days. This means that the Moon's day is fourteen Earth days long, as is its night. Though surviving on the Moon anytime is a challenge, getting through the lunar night is particularly difficult. The temperature drops to minus three hundred eighty-seven degrees Fahrenheit at night, requiring a considerable amount of power to keep things, and people, warm. Batteries capable of providing the power needed to keep a crew alive during the fourteen-day darkness period are far too heavy to fly in s.p.a.ce. Without sunlight, solar power is useless. That's why we didn't plan on them being on the Moon at night."

"That could be bad," Rowan commented. "What kind of power do they have? Will they have enough to keep from freezing until we arrive? Since they landed at the beginning of the lunar day, that'll mean they will have been in darkness for a little more than three days by the time we arrive. That is a long time."

"It is hard to say." Xiang replied. "If they are in their suits, and if the fuel cells survived the crash, then they could have found a way to use the various power systems on the s.p.a.cecraft to keep themselves from freezing. Our engineers are quite well trained, and they know the systems of their s.p.a.cecraft at least as well as your people know yours. There is a chance. Time is not on our side."

"Well, then," Stetson added, "I guess we'd better get off our b.u.t.ts and get busy."

Chapter 20.

In the three days since Paul Gesling and the pa.s.sengers of the Dreamscape Dreamscape heard the plea for help from the stranded Chinese taikonauts, the inescapable forces of gravity had been pulling them back home toward Earth. The moment of their return was now imminent, and they were busily preparing themselves for entry into the atmosphere and a not-too-distant landing on the desert runway in Nevada. heard the plea for help from the stranded Chinese taikonauts, the inescapable forces of gravity had been pulling them back home toward Earth. The moment of their return was now imminent, and they were busily preparing themselves for entry into the atmosphere and a not-too-distant landing on the desert runway in Nevada.

To most of the pa.s.sengers, coming directly back home and landing on the same runway from which they left seemed like no big deal. After all, didn't airplanes do that sort of thing all the time?

To Paul Gesling, who understood the complexities of orbital mechanics, the relative rotation of the Earth, and the effects the pull of gravity from the Moon had on his craft, it was simply amazing. Here they were, coming back from a quarter-of-a-million-mile journey to another world, and they were about to enter the Earth's atmosphere at speeds beyond the human mind's ability to imagine to pull off a pinpoint landing at the same spot from which they had left several days ago. The timing had to be perfect, and, from all indications, it likely would be. Nonetheless, he was nervous and continuously checking for updates on their position from the onboard computer.

In-s.p.a.ce acrobatics behind them, the pa.s.sengers were all buckled in their seats, running through the various checklists now scrolling on the screens in front of them. True, many of their tasks were trivial and designed mostly to keep them busy and to make sure they didn't hurt themselves as the pull of Earth's gravity noticeably returned. But it worked.

Gesling was in the pilot's seat, running through his own, less trivial, checklist. One by one, the ship's systems were checked out and appeared to be in perfect operating condition.

Dreamscape would enter the outermost region of the Earth's atmosphere within the hour and be on the ground shortly thereafter. would enter the outermost region of the Earth's atmosphere within the hour and be on the ground shortly thereafter.

The Honda minivan was back in place and ready to intercept as much data as possible during the landing. The same group of engineers that had been with the operation from the beginning were again in the van, as was their leader, Zeng Li.

Zeng was intently watching the televised coverage of the Dreamscape Dreamscape's landing being broadcast live on most of the major American cable, satellite, and television news networks. The coverage was, of course, interrupted by frequent advertis.e.m.e.nts and "this just in" updates about some celebrity or another, but the clear focus was coverage of the landing of the Dreamscape Dreamscape and the emergence of the people who had just flown past the Moon. For a short while, most Americans would know the names of current astronauts and not just those they had read about in their history books. and the emergence of the people who had just flown past the Moon. For a short while, most Americans would know the names of current astronauts and not just those they had read about in their history books.

The entire Chinese team had been as taken aback as the rest of the world at the news that their country had attempted a Moon landing. When that news broke, they had been resting at their Las Vegas hotel ("resting" was a relative term). All were shocked, and one of the team had subsequently become careless. In his excitement to learn more about the failed lunar landing and its crew, and especially since he had a brother who worked for the Chinese National s.p.a.ce Agency, he violated protocol and used Skype to call home and speak with his brother. Though he did not mention where he was or what he was doing, merely contacting his brother had been enough to set in motion the events that would soon lead to his capture and arrest.

His brother, like many other engineers working on China's military and civilian rocket programs-the two were almost indistinguishable-was on a CIA "watch list," and all of his communications were intercepted. This particular call was no exception.

The entire call was recorded and a.n.a.lyzed by the supercomputers at the National Security Agency (NSA). The call was flagged for follow-up by a human reviewer since it originated geographically near a recently reported act of espionage involving a certain private s.p.a.ce company with compromised computer chips and now-stolen technical plans for a hypersonic rocket and potential global-strike weapons system. The fact that at least one of the partic.i.p.ants on the call was a rocket scientist was the bit of data that ensured the message was flagged.

Within a few hours, an a.s.sessment team was poring over the transcript of the call, looking at its originating Internet service provider in the United States, and identifying the hotel on the Los Vegas strip from which it had originated. Shortly thereafter, they had the room number of the hotel and the name of the renter to whom the Internet service was being provided for a "nominal daily fee of $11.95." They were in the MGM Grand.

Taking a little longer, but not too long, voice-print-identification algorithms positively identified the brother of the Chinese rocket scientist and, based on other intelligence sources, had him firmly linked with his current employer-the Chinese equivalent of the Central Intelligence Agency. His photograph was now displayed on the NSA conference-room monitors as the a.s.sessment team again examined the intercepts and weighed what, if any, connection there might be between him and the recently stolen plans for the Dreamscape Dreamscape. According to the computer, and readily accepted by the team, the two must be linked. It was time to call the FBI.

By the time the Dreamscape Dreamscape was entering the atmosphere, and while Zeng was watching the event unfold on Fox News while his teammates intercepted telemetry from the s.p.a.ce Excursions facility only a few miles away, the FBI team was moving into place around them. High overhead, an unmanned surveillance drone had confirmed that the Honda was alone on the mesa. Twenty FBI agents in full-body armor were getting into position. was entering the atmosphere, and while Zeng was watching the event unfold on Fox News while his teammates intercepted telemetry from the s.p.a.ce Excursions facility only a few miles away, the FBI team was moving into place around them. High overhead, an unmanned surveillance drone had confirmed that the Honda was alone on the mesa. Twenty FBI agents in full-body armor were getting into position.

Gary Childers and Caroline O'Conner were waiting on the landing in the VIP viewing area near the end of the runway. Instead of the dozens of reporters that had been present at Dreamscape Dreamscape's launch, the number of reporters was now well over two hundred. All of them were anxious to get the story from the people who had been to the Moon and found the stranded Chinese taikonauts. In addition to the reporters, there were at least fifteen book agents looking for an opportunity to speak with one or more of the pa.s.sengers in the hopes of securing their stories for a sure-to-be-bestselling book. It was turning into a great day for commercial s.p.a.ce exploration.

Glancing frequently at the overhead status boards, which showed a cartoonlike schematic of the Dreamscape Dreamscape and its reentry trajectory, Childers and O'Conner looked like expectant parents. Their baby, however, was returning from a journey to another world. and its reentry trajectory, Childers and O'Conner looked like expectant parents. Their baby, however, was returning from a journey to another world.

By squinting in the bright Nevada sun, it was O'Conner who first spotted the Dreamscape Dreamscape on its flight path back to the s.p.a.ceport runway. She could not contain her excitement as she literally squealed and began to clap. Childers soon followed, as did all the VIPs and most of the a.s.sembled reporters. None had forgotten the on its flight path back to the s.p.a.ceport runway. She could not contain her excitement as she literally squealed and began to clap. Childers soon followed, as did all the VIPs and most of the a.s.sembled reporters. None had forgotten the Columbia Columbia s.p.a.ce shuttle tragedy and all were relieved when they saw that s.p.a.ce shuttle tragedy and all were relieved when they saw that Dreamscape Dreamscape had made it through its fiery reentry into the Earth's atmosphere. The ship was right where it was supposed to be and not a minute too soon or too late. had made it through its fiery reentry into the Earth's atmosphere. The ship was right where it was supposed to be and not a minute too soon or too late.

The Dreamscape Dreamscape grew in apparent size as it neared the runway. Like a glorious and n.o.ble bird it soared toward them, and, moments before touchdown, the landing gear sprang from within its body to provide the cushioning required for a soft landing. grew in apparent size as it neared the runway. Like a glorious and n.o.ble bird it soared toward them, and, moments before touchdown, the landing gear sprang from within its body to provide the cushioning required for a soft landing.

"Three, two, one-touchdown!" came an anonymous voice from the PA system in the VIP area. The same voice was used as a voiceover by all the media broadcasting the landing, including the channel being watched in the Honda minivan just a few miles away.

"Three, two, one-touchdown!" said the voice of s.p.a.ce Excursions through the small speaker on the monitor that Zeng was watching intently while his colleagues were collecting telemetry from the Dreamscape Dreamscape as it rolled down the runway. as it rolled down the runway.

"Go! Go!" said the FBI team leader in charge of the raid. He spoke into the radio microphone wrapped around his head that allowed him to communicate with all twenty members of the team about to storm the van parked just ahead of them. The leader, Mike Brown, was a veteran of many drug raids and even a few counterterrorism raids. This was his first counterespionage raid, and he was not sure what to expect. His experience taught him that drug runners were the worst, often choosing to fight even when faced with overwhelming odds. The few terrorists he'd engaged hadn't suspected they were about to be raided, and they had simply rolled over without a fight. The drug runners, on the other hand, always always had their guns at their side and seemed to relish using them. had their guns at their side and seemed to relish using them.

Thanks to the drone flying directly overhead, the team determined that those in the van were alone and there was no sign of any remote-detection devices in the brush alongside the road leading up to it. With luck, the van's occupants would not have any warning of what was about to happen.

Like horses out of the gate at a racetrack, the highly trained members of the FBI's Southwestern Division counterterrorism squad moved toward the van from all directions. Each member of the team wore a helmet equipped with the latest communications system as well as the most advanced concussion protection available-should they be near a bomb blast. Head injuries from bombs were among the most difficult to prepare for. They all wore full-body armor, a hard lesson learned during their many drug raids over the years. More than one of this team had been saved from a bullet by their armor. And, of course, they had their guns out and ready for whatever might happen.

Simultaneously, the five SUVs that had carried them moved into position on the road in front and behind the van to block any chance of its escape.

The Dreamscape Dreamscape had been on the runway no more than five seconds when one of Zeng's team abruptly leapt from his seat near the front window of the van and began shouting in Chinese, "We have been discovered! Erase! Erase!" The man who shouted these words had just seen the FBI team swarm out of the brush, seemingly from nowhere. There was no other warning. had been on the runway no more than five seconds when one of Zeng's team abruptly leapt from his seat near the front window of the van and began shouting in Chinese, "We have been discovered! Erase! Erase!" The man who shouted these words had just seen the FBI team swarm out of the brush, seemingly from nowhere. There was no other warning.

Though they were well trained in what to do in the event of discovery, there was simply not enough time to begin the process of erasing all of the data they were collecting-though Zeng certainly tried. As soon as he heard the shouting and realized what was happening, he moved quickly to the console that would allow him, with just a few keystrokes, to begin erasing everything on the computers in the van. The erasure would be complete, randomly overwriting all the data multiple times in a process similar to that used by the Central Intelligence Agency for getting rid of information they didn't want exposed.

Zeng's hands were poised just above the console when the door to the van was thrown open.

Brown shouted, "Raise your hands! Now! This is the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and you are all under arrest!" Within seconds, Mike and three FBI men had entered the van with guns pointed at Zeng's team. This is the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and you are all under arrest!" Within seconds, Mike and three FBI men had entered the van with guns pointed at Zeng's team.

Zeng paused and looked Brown in the eye, his fingers just inches away from the keys that would delete everything. With his many years as an intelligence officer, he had learned to read people, including Westerners-whom he considered relatively easy to understand. He often told his team, "Westerners wear their intentions on their faces. They cannot help it." In this case, Zeng could tell that it was Mike Brown's intention to shoot him if he didn't immediately comply and raise his arms.

Though he momentarily considered performing his duty and lunging for the key that would erase the data, his instinct for self-preservation won out and he slowly raised his hands above his head. He never took his eyes from Brown's. Had he sensed a moment's hesitation, the data would have been erased. There was no such moment.

Within a single minute, the van was secure-not a shot was fired.

The Dreamscape Dreamscape rolled smoothly to the end of the runway and waited for the ground crew to bring the portable stairway that would allow Gesling, Thibodeau, Mbanta, Singer, Wells, and Graves to exit. For another few days, they would be the only American astronauts to venture beyond orbit since 1972. rolled smoothly to the end of the runway and waited for the ground crew to bring the portable stairway that would allow Gesling, Thibodeau, Mbanta, Singer, Wells, and Graves to exit. For another few days, they would be the only American astronauts to venture beyond orbit since 1972.

After determining that the vehicle was safe for the pa.s.sengers to exit, the door opened and the pa.s.sengers slowly made their way down the stairs and onto a red carpet, where a jubilant Gary Childers met them. They had been in s.p.a.ce for almost a week and were now in the middle of getting used to the tug of the Earth's gravity. For some it was a welcome relief; for others, it was a reminder that their adventure was truly over.

With handshakes to the exiting men and hugs to the women, Gary Childers was again in his element. Speeches followed, and then the entire group awaited Paul Gesling's egress from the vehicle. As in the dress rehearsals, Gesling had to take care of his post-flight checklist before he could make his exit.

When Gesling appeared in the doorway, the crowd erupted into applause. And the applause was not limited to those in the VIP area. The throngs of people outside the gates that had turned out for the launch six days ago were back; they too clapped and cheered. And more than a few people watching on television did so as well.

Gesling, somewhat taken aback by the whole spectacle, raised a hesitant arm and waved back to the crowd. With a little more confidence in his land legs than the pa.s.sengers who had exited before him, he made his way down the stairs and received an approving handshake and welcome from Childers when he arrived there.

"Well done, Paul," Gary exclaimed as he pumped his hand and patted him on the shoulder. "Well done!"

"Thanks" was all Paul could think of to say as he returned the handshake and smiled in Gary's general direction.

"Smile for the people, Paul. This is our payday."

"I knew you would do it!" Caroline O'Conner shouted and cheered as she brushed past Childers and threw her arms around Gesling, greeting him with a more than collegial "Welcome home, Paul." There wasn't time for the close contact to continue, but it was clear to all that neither O'Conner nor Gesling was quite ready for it to end.

"Payday? We lost money on this flight," Paul said under his breath to Childers.

"Did we, Paul? I'm not so sure." While the flight in particular lost money, Childers considered it an "investment." The bookings on the next ten flights were firm, and by number eight he would be in the black. And he'd been thinking about the rescue mission. He'd heard one of the talking-head science experts on the news claim that all of the American and Chinese astronauts could reenter in the Orion s.p.a.ce capsule and that they would likely be dropped off at the ISS. The wheels were turning in his dollars-oriented brain. Of course, his company could use the write-off provided by the first seven flights as "losses" if they needed to. And of course they would do that. With good accountants, losses could be a good thing. But Gary liked making money and planned on doing just that.

Chapter 21.

Astronauts Bill Stetson and Anthony Chow were swiftly and accurately stepping through procedures and checking off items on their checklists. Their Orion s.p.a.ce capsule sat roughly thirty stories atop more than a million pounds of highly explosive ammonium perchlorate composite propellant and another fairly large volume of liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen. If things were to go awry, there would be plenty of fuel for that fire. But Bill and Tony were far too busy to ponder the ramifications of such an unlikely event when the solid rocket motors of the Ares I first stage ignited. Unlike the s.p.a.ce shuttle, which sat lazily on the launch pad for the first few seconds after igniting its main engines, the Ares I leapt off the pad, the resulting acceleration pushing the two men solidly into their couches with more force than that experienced on any other human-rated rocket.

Selected for safety and not comfort, using solid rocket motors for a rocket carrying people had been controversial from the beginning. Many astronauts, including Stetson, had been skeptical. Unlike a liquid-fueled rocket, a solid-fueled rocket could not be shut off once lit. A solid rocket motor would burn until it ran out of fuel. And it was precisely because of this that the Von Braun team had designed the Saturn V rocket with liquid-fueled engines and refused to use solid rocket motors. But, being beholden to data, Stetson eventually became a fan of the approach when he reviewed the reports showing that solid rocket motors failed far less often than their liquid motor counterparts.

"T minus four minutes and holding." The voice of the launch director sounded deadpan and emotionless over the intercom, on television, radios, and inside Bill's helmet speakers. "This is a scheduled twenty-minute built-in hold. The countdown clock will resume in nineteen minutes and forty-seven seconds from now."

"Getting close, Tony!" Bill couldn't hide his excitement. "Put your game face on, buddy."

"d.a.m.n close, and put me in coach!" Tony replied then keyed the com after looking at his checklist. "Launch control, we are starting the interior launch cameras and telemetry recorders."

"Roger that, Mercy I Mercy I. Be advised that we've got launch weather verification, and it looks like all is go at this point."

"Control." Stetson added his checklist items to the conversation. "The launch computer is showing green and is configured for launch." Bill thought about the action taking place back in the launch control center or LCC. The director was probably polling the various console drivers to see if they were ready to continue with the launch. Were Bill a fly on the wall, he would have heard a query of "Launch Authority Team go, no-go?" Which would usually be followed by "Go for launch." And then "Guidance and Control go, no-go?" "Go for launch!" And the process would continue through all the Ares 1 launch systems until the launch director was a.s.sured that, indeed, the Ares 1 launch vehicle was cleared to leave Earth.

"Launch control shows first-stage igniter heater power removed. Mercy I, Mercy I, please verify." please verify."

"Uh, roger that, launch control. We show green light on first-stage igniter heater breakers," Stetson replied. Bill and Tony responded to what seemed like an endless list of items to be checked until the twenty-minute hold was complete. Finally, the word was given.

"This is launch control. We have final launch status verification and are now resuming the countdown. Start the clock now at T minus four minutes and counting."

"Roger that, control. Mercy I Mercy I shows flight-termination system and solid rocket motors are armed." Bill looked over at his colleague and flashed him a grin. "We're almost there now!" shows flight-termination system and solid rocket motors are armed." Bill looked over at his colleague and flashed him a grin. "We're almost there now!"

"Let's go, let's go!" Tony replied.

"T minus one minute and forty seconds. We show the rocket's flight-control system is enabled for launch. Mercy I, Mercy I, please verify." please verify."

"Flight-control system is green." Tony tapped the green icon on his computer screen to verify. At that moment the flight-control system software switched the entire flight-control system from land power over to internal rocket systems power and started counting off seconds to ignition.

"T minus one minute and counting."

"We ready, Tony?"

"A-OK, Bill."

"Roger that." Bill tapped another icon on his checklist. "Auxiliary power units are running, and Mercy I Mercy I shows solid rocket motor thrust vector control gimbal test is good." shows solid rocket motor thrust vector control gimbal test is good."

"T minus eighteen seconds. Ignition and hold-down bolts are armed and ready. We have sound suppression active and launcher flood is initiated."

"Roger that, control." Stetson pushed his body into his couch as best he could, preparing for the upcoming thrust.

"Launch inhibits are removed and vehicle is armed. Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, ignition!"

Bill and Tony held on and tried not to grit their teeth.

"We have liftoff! Start the clock as Mercy I Mercy I clears the tower for America's return to the Moon!" The launch director's voice sounded excited and enthusiastic for a brief moment. clears the tower for America's return to the Moon!" The launch director's voice sounded excited and enthusiastic for a brief moment.

NASA was through simply sending astronauts around and around the Earth. It was finished sending only robots to explore beyond low Earth orbit. Americans were going into s.p.a.ce, and they were on their way to the Moon.

As the Ares I cleared the launch tower, it began its ascent into Earth orbit, and its characteristic vibrations began shaking the teeth of the two astronauts perched on top. During its design, engineers had discovered that the vibrations caused by the firing of the solid rocket motors would be jarring enough to cause brain damage in its pa.s.sengers. After considerable effort, a system was devised to dampen the vibrations, making them merely annoying rather than lethal. To those riding on the beast, the difference was a matter of academic debate.

The solid rocket motors had just burned out when eighteen mini-explosions occurred-jarring the veritable heck out of the astronauts and causing them to fall forward into their chairs. The explosive bolts connecting the rocket's first stage with its second stage had just fired. And the sequence was just as violent, as exciting, and as exhilarating as Bill had remembered from his previous two flights. Though still exciting, to Bill it was just another day at the office. To Tony, on the other hand, who had only partic.i.p.ated in simulation flights thus far, it was all new and very scary. Very. Scary.

"Hang on there, Tony," Bill said. "Second-stage engines are about to kick in, and it is a kick in the pants!"

"I'm hanging!" Chow shouted back-welcoming the pause in the nerve-wracking launch vibrations.

"Going for second-stage ignition," Stetson radioed to mission control. The liquid engines of the second stage of the Ares I rocket fired, again forcing both Stetson and Chow back into their chairs at well over three gravities. There was very little piloting to be done in this phase of the flight. The computer controlled everything. Stetson monitored all the instruments just in case he disagreed with the computer and had to take over control. He was prepared, thanks to countless hours of training. But such an event was extremely unlikely. Bill kept an eye out anyway.

"Roger that, Mercy I Mercy I. Telemetry shows second-stage ignition is good," mission control replied. Mercy I Mercy I was the name given to the mission in the hours before launch. Rescuing the trapped Chinese would someday be considered to be the most technologically complex act of mercy in human history. It was likely the most risky and failure p.r.o.ne as well. was the name given to the mission in the hours before launch. Rescuing the trapped Chinese would someday be considered to be the most technologically complex act of mercy in human history. It was likely the most risky and failure p.r.o.ne as well.

"What an incredible view," Chow exclaimed as he peered out the window to his right.