Seveneves

By Day 700, the Cloud Ark stretches across the sky “like a bright bead strung on a silver chain” (229). Arkies (civilians selected in the Casting of Lots) arrive at an increased rate. The station’s growing network of connected modules allows for freer movement. Non-Arkies, including specialists like Dubois, form the General Population. Amalthea remains positioned at the front of Izzy. Given Izzy’s 93-minute orbit, Earth time is irrelevant; the community adopts Greenwich time, including it in their date format—for instance, “A+1.335.8, or ‘dot 8’” (234). Working third shift, which coincides with his family’s time zone on Earth, Dubois visits the gym, where he encounters Luisa. She reports that Venezuelan officials have threatened the Kourou spaceport with a missile strike after Venezuelan citizens were excluded from the Cloud Ark. Ivy (whom Markus has replaced) joins them. As Ivy and Luisa discuss Cal, who has “gone dark,” Dubois leaves for the third torus, T3, home to Markus’s office and “The Farm,” a hub for support staff.

On the Situational Awareness Monitors, Dubois sees Julia denouncing the People’s Justice Blockade as a Venezuelan political stunt. A public relations officer asks him to record a message to calm public fears.