"David Grinnell- To Venus! To Venus!" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grinnell David)

"Yes, sir." Jim turned, dropped the tape pack carrying his report,
picked it up and scurried through the bulkhead, bumping his head.

"All right, Chet, come into my office." Captain Borg led the way to his
"office," which was simply a cubicle containing a small table and a double
bench at either side.

Chet had taken his tape pack from his suit. It contained a full account
of his mission. He placed it on the table.

"My report, sir," he said.

"Good." Captain Borg took it and tucked it into a container on the wall
near him. Later, it would be condensed to its vital parts and he would
listen to it. His brows furrowed as he leaned slightly forward.

"You heard the earlier report about the Russian Venus probe?" he
asked.

"Yes I did. Something about a landing on the surface. I couldn't tell
whether it was supposed to be manned or not."

"That's the way they like it," Borg said, "but while you were in your
approach and docking we received an update on the story. Seems the
mission was unmanned. An automatic station sending loud and clear from
the surface of Venus!"

"So they've developed hardware and batteries capable of taking the
heat and transmitting through it." Chet looked impressed. It did not strike
him as an outstanding technological breakthrough, but, as an astronaut,
he respected efforts and achievements in space at any level, by any human.

"Seems they didn't have to," Borg continued evenly, betraying nothing
more than a straight reporter's manner. "Seems that the surface of Venus
is not too different from Central Africa. Kinda hot. Nice soil. Plant life.
Even real, honest-to-goodness plants. The kind of place our friend Holmes
would like; he wouldn't have to wear a suit."

Chet was stunned. Both the United States and Soviet flybys had
indicated, and the scientific world had agreed, that the surface
temperature of Venus had to be well over 600┬░ Fahrenheit. Pure lead
would run like a river at that heat.

"Has that been confirmed?" he gasped.

"Sure has," Borg replied laconically, "by the Russians."

"But I mean, has anybody else agreed?" Chet floundered. The news was
altogether too surprising to be taken in stride.