"Gordon R. Dickson - The Far Call 2" - читать интересную книгу автора (Dickson Gordon R)

Synopsis
It is the early 1980's. After a period of dangerous cutbacks, the space program has been
revived in the form of an internationally cooperative six party effort, to take advantage of the
1983 launch window and make a manned, three-year, round-trip spaceflight and landing on Mars.
Providing "Marsnauts" (the name is the result of a compromise between the US. and Russia) to
the three-man crews of the two ships, are the United States: TADELL (TAD) HANSARD; Great
Britain: DIRK WELLES; the Pan-European Community of Nations: BERN CALLIEUX; Russia:
FEODOR (FEDYA) ASTURNOV; India: BAPTI (BAP) LAL BOSE; and Japan: ANOSHI
WANTANABE.
These countries are also represented by diplomatic representatives, known as Deputy
Ministers for the Development of Space (Britain: SIR GEOFFREY MAYENCE; Pan-Europe:
WALTHER GUENTHER; Russia: SERGEI VARISOV; India: MAHADEV AMBEDKAR; and
Japan: MASAHARU TATSUKICHIтАФplus their US. opposite number who goes under the
comparative title of Undersecretary for the Development of Space, ex-newsman JEN WYLIE.
As the story begins, the diplomatic representatives have just had lunch with the Marsnauts in
their prelaunch quarters, the Operations and Checkout Building, Cape Kennedy. Upon boarding
the bus that takes the politicos from the Operations and Checkout Building, JEN uses a phone in
the bus to call WARNER (WARN) RETHE, the U.S. Presidential Press Secretary, and asks if he
can talk to President PAUL FANZONE about something that is presently concerning TAD
HANSARD, who is the senior co-captain of the Mars mission (FEDYA ASTURNOV is the junior
co-captain).
TAD is concerned that the load of scientific experiments required of the Marsnauts is too
heavy for the safety of the mission, particularly during the first six weeks of the flight. He is trying
to get word of this through JEN to the President, so that the six world powers involved can
negotiate among themselves and reduce the number of experimentsтАФin which a great deal of
national self-interest and pride is concerned.
The President, however, cannot talk to JEN at the moment. The best the press secretary can
offer is the hope of a chance for JEN to talk with the Chief Executive at the Presidential reception
near the spaceport that evening, when FANZONE will be present in person. The President has
otherwise avoided appearing on the Cape Kennedy scene, the political situation being delicate
since the flight is from U.S. grounds. Technically, JEN is his representative on the scene in all
things.
That evening before the reception, JEN ' s girl friend, ALINDE (LIN) WEST, appears at the
hotel where he and the other political representatives are quartered. He must leave her there
while he goes to the reception.
At the reception, JEN suggests that TAD talk to FANZONE. But nothing seems to come of it
until the reception is over, when he is held back from leaving for several minutes by
WARNRETHE, so that FANZONE can talk to him.
FANZONE tells JEN bluntly that as U.S. President he is the last of the six political groups'
leaders to suggest a reduction in the experimental work load on the 'nauts. This is because the
U.S. already has too large a share in the Mars mission to begin with; and because, from a political
standpoint, the mission itself is secondary to the international cooperation necessary to getting the
people of the world to fund basic research that will relieve power and food shortages and clean up
a disordered (if momentarily peaceful) Earth. FANZONE admits his own interest in space
development for its own sake; but says it must take a serving role to politics on Earth, and he
must operate from that standpoint.
Blocked of help from the President, JEN approaches BILL WARD, the Mars Launch Director,
on the next morning, which is the morning of the launch. BILL admits that NASA is also aware
that the experimental work load is dangerously heavy, but says that those who work in the space
effort have struggled to keep the program alive, and daren't be the first to risk popular criticism