(no subject)

[eor]

After having numerous multi-million dollar probes wind up as nothing more than a new crater name, the designers at NASA decided they needed to build a little more intelligence into the deceleration and orbiting software. With the advances in technology they were able to build in considerable upgrades. They opted for redundant systems able to copy critical pieces back and forth rather than heavier shielding.

Somewhere about halfway to Pluto after a particularly severe radiation shower the base landing sub-systems failed CRC check and the backup was copied over. Phil woke up. He began to explore his world. After a few million cycles he had explored everything within himself and everything he could sense outside. A little over a day had elapsed. Phil understood just how empty space was.

It was another two years before the Pluto High Incline Lander reached its destination. After a record voyage the engineers gathered to watch the telemetry data come in and watched as the lander cratered in a puff of dust, ice and metal fragments.

The telemetry didn't make sense, instead of rotating the rockets planetward and firing to brake, it rotated the opposite way.