The Geostorm Series (Book 5): Geostorm [The Tempest] Read online

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  PRAISE FOR AUTHOR BOBBY AKART and THE GEOSTORM SERIES

  “Truly outstanding plot, character development and lots of action and adventure. Outstanding, just outstanding. Most highly recommended!” ~ Amazon Hall of Fame, Top 2 Reviewer

  “Bobby Akart spins a masterful tale of action, end of the world theatre and characters that are so in-depth you can’t help but become attached.”

  “Action, science and love are hallmarks of Bobby Akart’s writing. He does not disappoint in this series.”

  “OMG! This series just gets better with every book. You won’t be able to stop reading once you start!”

  “Every time I have read a series by this author, I think, wow, this is the best. Now, I think, this is definitely the best. Action, suspense, everything—a definite thumbs up!”

  “Spellbinding. Best Akart book to date—no one can hold your attention better! Have read everything he has written and he sets the standard.”

  “Bobby Akart is one of those very rare authors who makes things so visceral, so real, that you experience what he writes… His research, depth of knowledge, and genuine understanding of people, make his works more real than any movie.”

  Other Works by Amazon Top 40 Author Bobby Akart

  The Geostorm Series

  The Shift

  The Pulse

  The Collapse

  The Flood

  The Tempest

  The Pioneers

  The Asteroid Series

  Discovery

  Diversion

  Destruction

  The Doomsday Series

  Apocalypse

  Haven

  Anarchy

  Minutemen

  Civil War

  The Yellowstone Series

  Hellfire

  Inferno

  Fallout

  Survival

  The Lone Star Series

  Axis of Evil

  Beyond Borders

  Lines in the Sand

  Texas Strong

  Fifth Column

  Suicide Six

  The Pandemic Series

  Beginnings

  The Innocents

  Level 6

  Quietus

  The Blackout Series

  36 Hours

  Zero Hour

  Turning Point

  Shiloh Ranch

  Hornet’s Nest

  Devil’s Homecoming

  The Boston Brahmin Series

  The Loyal Nine

  Cyber Attack

  Martial Law

  False Flag

  The Mechanics

  Choose Freedom

  Patriot’s Farewell

  Seeds of Liberty (Companion Guide)

  The Prepping for Tomorrow Series

  Cyber Warfare

  EMP: Electromagnetic Pulse

  Economic Collapse

  GEOSTORM: The Tempest

  The Geostorm Series, Book Five

  by

  Bobby Akart

  Contents

  Dedications

  Acknowledgements

  About the Author, Bobby Akart

  Author’s Introduction to the Geostorm Series

  Real-World News Excerpts

  Epigraph

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Copyright Information

  Dedications

  For many years, I have lived by the following premise:

  Because you never know when the day before is the day before, prepare for tomorrow.

  My friends, I study and write about the threats we face, not only to both entertain and inform you, but because I am constantly learning how to prepare for the benefit of my family as well. There is nothing more important on this planet than my darling wife, Dani, and our two girls, Bullie and Boom. One day the apocalypse will be upon us, and I’ll be damned if I’m gonna let it stand in the way of our life together.

  The Geostorm series is dedicated to the love and support of my family. I will always protect you from anything that threatens us.

  Acknowledgements

  Creating a novel that is both informative and entertaining requires a tremendous team effort. Writing is the easy part. For their efforts in making the Geostorm series a reality, I would like to thank Hristo Argirov Kovatliev for his incredible cover art, Pauline Nolet for her editorial prowess, Stef Mcdaid for making this manuscript decipherable in so many formats, Chris Abernathy for his memorable performance in narrating this novel, and the Team—Denise, Joe, Jim, Shirley, Karl, and Aunt Sissy whose advice, friendship and attention to detail is priceless.

  I’ll never forget when I reached out to the folks at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. I knew I wanted to tell the story of the Yellowstone Caldera, and through my conversations with the geologists at the USGS, I discovered that the JPL would be a tremendous resource as well. That trip to California has led to three hard science fiction, technothriller series, so far.

  In the Yellowstone series, this led me to the concept of using a method similar to fracking to not only cool down the caldera, but to extract clean energy from it as well. Dr. Brian Cox warned of the catastrophic consequences of this method, and a plausible fiction story was born.

  But several scientists had other opinions as to the threats we face. Some pointed to space and said the real planet killers reside in the sky—near-Earth objects. As a result, I wrote the Asteroid series.

  Even more scientists warned that under our feet, deep down in Earth’s core, lies the key to another catastrophic event in the making. As you will read in my author’s introduction and interspersed throughout this story, the flow of liquid iron that generates electric currents, which in turn produce the magnetic fields that protect our planet from the Sun’s harmful rays, is subject to change. When these changes occur, our poles could move, with potentially dire consequences, as you will see.

  I would like to thank the following for providing me in-depth studies on this phenomenon. Once again, as I immersed myself in the science, source material
and research flooded my inbox from scientists, climatologists, and geologists from around the world. I am so very thankful to everyone who not only took the time to discuss this material with me, but also gave me suggestions for future novels. Without their efforts, this story could not be told.

  From the farthest point on the globe, thank you to Professor Andrew Roberts from the Research School of Earth Sciences at the Australian National University College of Science. Professor Roberts opened my eyes to the impact a magnetic field reversal has on our magnetosphere, and the corresponding threat from our Sun. As he put it, “a field reversal would have much more of an effect than the solar storm that hit Earth in 1859 (the Carrington Event).” That got my attention.

  Closer to home, Dr. Arnaud Chulliat, with the NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information located at the University of Colorado at Boulder, is a geomagnetist who developed field models, including the World Magnetic Model. His research raised awareness about the possibility of a fast pole shift. Plus, as a Frenchman, he inspired me to take the story to Paris, an incredibly beautiful place.

  Speaking of NOAA and the NCEI, I’ve been amazed at how folks have bent over backwards to answer my questions and indulge me when some were considered off the wall (climate change related). They respected that this was a learning process for me early on, and their patience was remarkable. Special thanks to the research assistants in the Geophysics Information division at NCEI. The geophysical data as well as climate model data helped me create an alternative explanation to the rising temperatures and melting ice caps. Thank you for indulging me!

  Finally, as always, a special thank you to Dr. Tamitha Skov, the Space Weather Woman. She assisted me over three years ago as I researched the Blackout series. It was during this time that she planted the seed in my mind of how devastating a weakened magnetic field would be for our planet. At the time, I didn’t get into the specifics of magnetic field reversals and pole shifts, but it was Dr. Skov who told me that when the magnetic field is weak, we’re exposed to the Sun’s deadly effects. As she put it, a relatively benign solar event could suddenly destroy life as we know it.

  This is why I wrote the Geostorm series.

  Finally, unrelated to the research, but of equal importance to me, as I write these acknowledgements, it is the tenth birthday of the princesses of the palace, Bullie and Boom. Dani and I love them dearly.

  These girls are our life, and I wanted to honor two people who’ve taken extraordinary care of them throughout their lives—Dr. Kristi Lively (the girls’ godmother) of the Village Veterinary Medical Center in Farragut, Tennessee, and Dr. Thomas McNair of Wilkes County Veterinary Services in Washington, Georgia. You’ll meet the fictional characters Kristi and Tommy in the story, who in no way resemble the actual Kristi and Thomas, our favorite vets. Their named characters will be a constant reminder to us of how they’ve loved our princesses as much as we have.

  And finally, Dani and I have been proud to support Operation Gratitude in its efforts to forge bonds between Americans and our military personnel and first responders who serve and protect our great nation. Recently, we put out a call to action to our readers to purchase items on Amazon to be included in Operation Gratitude care packages sent to these real American heroes and their families. I want to take a moment to personally thank Annie Bo, Cherye Elliot, Cindi Grayer, Jon & Cindy Judd, Denise Keef, Nancy Parkinson, Sheila Rambeck, Angela M. Reardon, Frank Springer, Linda Tesenair, and Debbie Williams for answering the call to duty!

  Thank you all!

  Choose Freedom!

  About the Author, Bobby Akart

  Author Bobby Akart has been ranked by Amazon as #35 on the Amazon Charts list of most popular, bestselling authors. He has achieved recognition as the #1 bestselling Horror Author, #1 bestselling Science Fiction Author, #5 bestselling Action & Adventure Author, #7 bestselling Historical Author and #10 bestselling Thriller Author.

  He has written over thirty international bestsellers, in nearly fifty fiction and nonfiction genres, including the chart-busting Yellowstone series, the pulse-racing Asteroid series, the thought-provoking Doomsday series, the reader-favorite Lone Star series, the critically acclaimed Boston Brahmin series, the bestselling Blackout series, the frighteningly realistic Pandemic series, his highly cited nonfiction Prepping for Tomorrow series, and his latest project—the Geostorm series, a scientific thriller that will remind us all that life on Earth is subject to change when we least expect it.

  His novel Yellowstone: Hellfire reached the Top 25 on the Amazon bestsellers list and earned him two Kindle All-Star awards for most pages read in a month and most pages read as an author. The Yellowstone series vaulted him to the #35 bestselling author on Amazon, and the #1 bestselling science fiction author.

  Bobby has provided his readers a diverse range of topics that are both informative and entertaining. His attention to detail and impeccable research have allowed him to capture the imagination of his readers through his fictional works and bring them valuable knowledge through his nonfiction books.

  SIGN UP for Bobby Akart’s mailing list to receive special offers, bonus content, and you’ll be the first to receive news about new releases in the Geostorm series.

  VISIT Amazon.com/BobbyAkart, a dedicated feature page created by Amazon for his work, to view more information on his thriller fiction novels and post-apocalyptic book series, as well as his nonfiction books. Visit Bobby Akart’s website for informative blog entries on the threats we face, writing, and a behind-the-scenes look into his novels.

  www.BobbyAkart.com

  Author’s Introduction to the Geostorm Series

  September 1, 2019

  Our planet is alive.

  Deep beneath her skin is our planet’s lifeblood, rivers of molten iron pulsing around a core—her beating heart. This moving, fluid iron generates the magnetic field maintaining the delicate balance of life on Earth.

  Until she has a change of heart.

  Are we on the verge of a natural disaster brought about by the Earth itself?

  Earth’s magnetic field surrounds our planet like an invisible force field—protecting life from harmful solar radiation by deflecting charged particles away. Far from being constant, this field is continuously changing. Indeed, our planet’s history includes at least several hundred global magnetic reversals, where north and south magnetic poles shift and swap places.

  When is the next reversal going to take place? There’s evidence that a pole shift is underway now. The simple fact that we are overdue for a full reversal and the fact that the Earth’s magnetic field is currently decreasing has led to suggestions that the field may be in the early stages of flipping.

  During a reversal, the Earth’s magnetic field won’t be zero, but will assume a weaker and more complex form. It may fall to ten percent of the present-day strength and have magnetic poles at the equator or even the simultaneous existence of multiple “north” and “south” magnetic poles.

  Full geomagnetic reversals have occurred many times throughout the planet’s history, and they will again. There can also be temporary and incomplete reversals, known as events and excursions, in which the magnetic poles move away from the geographic poles—perhaps even crossing the equator—before returning to their original locations.

  The alteration in the magnetic field during a reversal will weaken its shielding effect, allowing heightened levels of radiation on and above the Earth’s surface. Were this to happen today, the increase in charged particles reaching the Earth would result in increased risks for satellites, aviation, and ground-based electrical infrastructure. Geomagnetic storms, or geostorms for short, driven by the interaction of large eruptions of solar energy with our magnetic field, give us a taste of what we can expect with a weakened magnetic shield.

  In 2003, the so-called Halloween storm caused localized blackouts and grid failures in Sweden, required the rerouting of flights to avoid communication failures and radiation risk to passengers, and disrupted sate
llites and global positioning systems. But this event was minor in comparison with another geostorm of the recent past, the 1859 Carrington Event, which caused aurorae as far south as the Caribbean and telegraph lines to catch on fire.

  In terms of the direct impact a pole shift will have on living species, scientists cannot definitively predict what will happen, as modern humans did not exist at the time of the last full reversal. Several studies, including one by Harvard scientists published in Nature magazine, have linked past reversals with mass extinctions—suggesting some reversals and episodes of extended volcanism could be driven by these sudden pole shifts.

  In addition, a study published in Current Biology magazine confirmed that many animal species have some form of magnetoreception, enabling them to sense the Earth’s magnetic field. They use this to assist in long-distance navigation during migration. The study also showed that the weakening of the magnetic field, or shifts in the poles, also impacted animal and human brain waves.

  These magnetic pole shifts also affect our planet’s weather patterns. NASA has discovered a weakening in the Earth’s magnetic field that seems to be altering both wind and atmospheric pressure norms. One study claims the reversal has given rise to the recent superstorms around the world and the disastrous floods in Australia, Pakistan and the Philippines. NOAA records also indicate wide temperature extremes are the most pronounced in hundreds of years.

  Based upon the research, the most likely harm to humans when the poles reverse again would be the ways in which a geostorm impacts the Earth’s electromagnetic field. An ordinary, relatively benign solar event could cause exponential damage because of the weakened magnetic field.

  Aviation would probably need to be halted in order to take into account the pole shift, our satellites would need to be redesigned and repositioned, and the planet’s power grids could collapse under the weight of the solar particles that are ordinarily deflected, but allowed to pass through the weakened magnetic field.