The Ice Limit
Date
2000
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Grand Central Publishing
Abstract
Meteorite hunter Nestor Masangkay is embarking on an expedition in Chile, and tracks a meteorite using a scanner, concluding that the object is massive. However, he is suddenly killed when researching the meteorite. Some time later, Palmer Lloyd, an American collector of exotic artefacts, has access to Nestor’s scientific equipment, after its recovery. Lloyd becomes fascinated by the discovery of the meteorite, especially after finding out that it is supposedly the largest one ever seen. He promptly hires the “Effective Engineering Solutions”, a company which undertakes the task of recovering the huge object and transporting it to him. The president of the “Effective Engineering Solutions”, Eli Glinn, commands an expedition to the place where the meteorite lays. Nestor’s body is recovered, and the meteorite is discovered to be much smaller than what was initially thought; furthermore, it appears that its exterior is comprised of an element that has an approximate atomic number of 177, which is unprecedented, and leads the crew to think that this is part of the fabled “island of stability”, i.e. when superheavy elements can have a longer lifespan than what is usually possible in a laboratory (as this happens because the isotopes are far too unstable to allow stability, which is predicted to happen around proton 180). It is also discovered that the meteorite discharges electricity on contact, especially when liquid containing salt touches it, and this is thought of as Nestor’s cause of death. The expedition crew tries to move the meteorite out of its place; however, the voyage goes wrong and many members are killed, but not before one of them (Amira) manages to give another one (McFarlane) a CD containing the test data they collected when conducting research on the meteorite. Then, the survivours are rescued by helicopter. Later, inside an Antarctic science station, Lloyd confronts the survivours, and McFarlane concludes the novel by saying what Amira discovered: that what they had been studying was not a meteorite, but an alien seed that was sprouting.
Description
Keywords
meteorite , science station , expedition , atomic number , island of stability
Citation
Preston, Douglas, and Lincoln Child. The Ice Limit. Grand Central Publishing, 2000.