Astro Ada and the Silent Comet
Astro Ada and the Silent Comet
by Ivy Chen
A comet has gone quiet, and only twelve-year-old engineer Ada can figure out why.
- Age
- Ages 9–12
- Pages
- 96
Flip through the book
Tap the cover to open it. Turn the pages like a real book.
Astro Ada and the Silent Comet
Once upon a time…
Comets aren't supposed to be quiet. They hum, they crackle, they sing in bursts of radio static that make the instruments on Station Lyra dance. Every comet ever recorded had made some sort of noise as it passed the sun. But this one was different. It streamed silently across the screens, and it did not hum, or crackle, or sing. It just listened.
Page 1
Ada floated in the observatory, twelve years old and the only engineer left on Station Lyra. The other scientists had gone home for the holidays, and the long corridors were empty and echoing. Only the low hum of the machines kept her company. She pulled her knees up to her chest, stared at the silent comet through the window, and frowned.
Page 2
She rebuilt the antenna twice. She checked every wire, every plug and every dial, and she tested each one three times. She ran diagnostics until her eyes were sore. The comet stayed silent, its long tail streaming behind it like a question mark across the stars. Ada pushed her hair out of her eyes. "Come on," she muttered. "Tell me something."
Page 3
Late on the third night, she noticed a pattern. It was so small that she almost missed it. The silence was not smooth. It came in beats, long and short, long and short, with a rhythm as steady as a heartbeat. She played the recording back at ten times the speed. It was not empty at all. It was a message, folded small.
Page 4
…and then?
Read onTap to open
Story mood
Is it a wind-down book, or a wake-up book?
- SleepyWide awake
- SillySerious
- BraveBig courage
- CuriousFull of wonder
Meet the characters
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Talk about it together
Conversation starters for after the last page.
Try this at home
Secret beats
Pick two sounds, like a clap and a tap. Send each other a short message using long and short beats. Can you decode it?
What your child will take away
- ✓Curiosity and science
- ✓Listening carefully
- ✓Persistence when stuck
About the author
Ivy Chen
Builds rockets out of cardboard with her two kids, then writes down where they went.
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