On the Beach_04⭐【Bakken】【Polar Bear Literature Club】

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Children playing innocently on the beach, women in swimsuits applying sunscreen to each other, and a man buried in the sand with only his face visible are being shown on TV.

Kaito was watching the large TV while eating curry rice in the cafeteria at Bakken (General Chemical Research Institute).

Since there is no ocean here, the broadcast was showing an artificial beach that many people long for. Regardless of different religions or races, everyone looks like they are having fun.

Due to immigration policies, the population had been increasing year by year. In proportion to that, energy consumption continued to rise, and energy shortages had become a serious problem.

Nuclear fusion power generation has made it possible to cover vast amounts of energy, and by reusing precious water, the operation of artificial beaches has become possible. However, if the energy shortage becomes more serious, leisure facilities will likely be the first to be closed down.

To resolve the energy shortage, the key is how to efficiently transport and store hydrogen, which is the fuel for nuclear fusion power generation.

For that purpose, the development of an alloy that can absorb more hydrogen than currently possible is essential. However, since the amount of hydrogen that can be absorbed depends on the elements that make up the alloy, it was necessary to find alternative elements to achieve a breakthrough.

“Kaito-san, is this seat taken?”
“Director Marius. It’s free. Please, have a seat.”

“Is the development of the hydrogen storage alloy progressing?”
“We are currently working on it.”

“That means it’s not going well, then.”
“Well, to be honest, it’s not looking very promising…”

Director Marius of Bakken wears a grim expression. If things continue like this, there is a possibility that we will not be able to meet the energy demand in the near future.

“With the amount of alloy we have now, how much longer can we maintain the current energy demand?”
“Well, I think it will last for 10 years, but…”

“Only 10 years? If the population continues to grow like this, it will be even shorter.”
“I was planning to make a formal request later, but we need to go to Earth immediately to retrieve alloy resources.”

“I agree. Let’s start by extending our lifespan with that, and in the meantime, we will continue development.”
“Yes.”

“I will convey that to the Ministry of Resources.”
“Please do.”

Earth was contaminated with radiation. In particular, the places where alloy resources are buried were contaminated with high-concentration radioactive materials, and approaching them was a dangerous act in itself.

All resources within the space colony were brought from Earth, and they are utilized after decontaminating the radioactive materials.

(To be continued)

(Click here for a recap of the previous episode)

I am serializing a collection of plausible science fiction (SF) short stories. I plan to post them around every Friday. I have included links to each episode in the table of contents, so please feel free to look back through them.

(Click here for [Characters and Table of Contents])

I am participating in a project by Kosuke Komaki.
Thank you every week.

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