"Jean and Jeff Sutton - Alien From The Stars" - читать интересную книгу автора (Sutton Jean and Jeff)

unintelligible but patterned sounds which were self-identifying as the outputs
of electronic communication systems. He wasn't startled; such communication
devices were fairly common in many emerging cultures.
He commenced a slow deceleration, at the same time activating a number
of sensors to obtain the specific data he needed. One recorded the outputs of
a vast number of heat sources; he translated the instrument analysis in terms
of a neo-industrial culture -- cities, transportation complexes, centralized
governments. Another instrument pinged, and a small blip crawling across the
face of a grid identified the existence of a man-made satellite. In a short
time he determined that a large number of such satellites circled the planet.
This gave him pause for thought. A culture that possessed a satellite
capability almost certainly also possessed the means for detecting and
tracking such satellites; ergo, his arrival very likely would not go
unobserved.
As the data flowed in, he began to etch a more complete picture of the
planet's culture. Tentatively he placed it in the early stages of nuclear
development. That could be either good or bad, for he was well aware that
technical development and true civilization could be two quite different
things.
Civilization, in his own culture, was defined as the rapport of life in
a common cause dedicated to peace, equality, happiness, and intellectual
achievement, regardless of technical status. He had seen numerous highly
civilized planets which had not yet achieved interstellar or even
interplanetary travel but which had achieved a harmony of life. Conversely,
galactic history overflowed with the records of uncivilized but technically
oriented societies which had attained the nuclear stage of development, only
to perish in their own nuclear ashes.
He continued to decelerate, coming down over the planet's pole almost
directly above the dawn line. To his right the globe was caught in the web of
night; to his left he saw the awesome gleam of ice mountains sparkling under a
bright morning sun. As the ice cap fled to his rear, the land below became a
splotched giant in shifting patterns of whites and deep greens. Here and there
his vision was obscured by delicate filigrees of pale cloud. An irregular blue
shape etched against the mosaic was recognized as a gigantic lake.
He knew he had to decide quickly where he would land. The polar and
tropical regions were out. Although he could make but a rough estimate, he
knew it would serve well enough. Programming a small capsule, he injected it
into space. The capsule, remaining in orbit, would continually broadcast a
distress message.
A change in velocity brought a rapid deceleration -- the familiar feel
of a spacecraft tentatively dipping its nose into an air ocean. To his right,
caught in the web of night, a huge city swept past, its existence recorded in
terms of its energy sources. The land below, while nothing like that of Raamz,
his own planet, held a wild beauty that captivated his senses.
Another vast megalopolis wheeled toward him. Extending from mountains to
sea, it extended southward as far as he could see. Inasmuch as the coastline
angled inward, he shifted course to keep from shooting out over what appeared
to be unending sea. Beyond the smoke-blue ridges and peaks to his left, a tan
desert rolled eastward into the rising sun. The desert was out, for Barlo's
kind avoided direct sunlight whenever possible. Nocturnal, they preferred