Arthur Ch. Clarke Miasto i gwiazdy
Arthur C. Clarke Koniec dzieciństwa
Arthur C. Clarke Gwiazda (opowiadania)
J.R.R. Tolkien 02 The Two Towers
Two Towers
Cialdini Raobert Wywieranie wpływu na ludzi Teoria i praktyka (2)
fakty i mity 3
Shulz Bruno Sklepy cynamonowe
chip 5
www nie com pl 1
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.The Great Black Spot had long since fallen astern, and they would not see it again until they were well on the way home.Down there beneath the clouds, occasional explosions of light flared, many of them obviously caused by the Jovian equivalent of thunderstorms.But other glows and outbursts of luminescence were more long-lived, and of more uncertain origin.Sometimes rings of light would spread out like shock waves from a central source; and occasional rotating beams and fans occurred.It required little imagination to pretend that they were proof of a technological civilization down beneath those clouds - the lights of cities, the beacons of airports.But radar and balloon probes had long ago proved that nothing solid was down there for thousands upon thousands of kilometres, all the way to the unattainable core of the planet.Midnight on Jupiter! The last close-up glimpse was a magical interlude he would remember all his life.He could enjoy it all the more because, surely, nothing could now go wrong; and even if it did, he would have no reason to reproach himself He had done everything possible to ensure success.It was very quiet in the lounge; no one wished to speak as the carpet of clouds unrolled swiftly beneath them.Every few minutes Tanya or Vasili announced the status of the burn; toward the end of Discovery's firing time, tension began to increase again.This was the critical moment - and no one knew exactly when it would be.There was some doubt as to the accuracy of the fuel gauges, and the burn would continue until they were completely dry.'Estimated cut-off in ten seconds,' said Tanya.'Walter, Chandra - get ready to come back.Max, Vasili - stand by in case you're needed.Five.four.three.two.one.zero!'There was no change; the faint scream of Discovery's engines still reached them through the thickness of the two hulls, and the thrust-induced weight still continued to grip their limbs.We're in luck, thought Floyd; the gauges must have been reading low, after all.Every second of extra firing was a bonus; it might even mean the difference between life and death.And how strange to hear a countup instead of a countdown!five seconds.ten seconds.thirteen seconds.That's it - lucky thirteen!'Weightlessness, and silence, returned.On both ships, there was a brief burst of cheering.It was quickly truncated, for much was still to be done - and it had to be done swiftly.Floyd was tempted to go to the airlock so that he could give his congratulations to Chandra and Curnow as soon as they came aboard.But he would only be in the way; the airlock would be a very busy place as Max and Sasha prepared for their possible EVA and the tubeway joining the two ships was disconnected.He would wait in the lounge, to greet the returning heroes.And he could now relax even further - perhaps from eight to seven, on a scale of ten.For the first time in weeks, he could forget about the radio cut-off.It would never be needed; Hal had performed impeccably.Even if he wished, he could do nothing to affect the mission since Discovery's last drop of propellant had been exhausted.'All aboard,' announced Sasha.'Hatches sealed.I'm going to fire the charges.'There was not the faintest sound as the explosives were detonated, which surprised Floyd; he had expected some noise to be transmitted through the straps, taut as steel bands, that linked the ships together.But there was no doubt that they had gone off as planned, for Leonov gave a series of tiny shudders, as if someone was tapping on the hull.A minute later, Vasili triggered the attitude jets for a single brief burst.'We're free!' he shouted.'Sasha, Max - you won't be needed! Everyone get to your hammocks - ignition in one hundred seconds!'And now Jupiter was rolling away, and a strange new shape appeared outside the window - the long, skeletal frame of Discovery, navigation lights still shining as it drifted away from them and into history.No time remained for sentimental farewells; in less than a minute Leonov's drive would start to operate.Floyd had never heard it under full power and wanted to protect his ears from the roaring scream that now filled the universe.Leonov's designers had not wasted payload on sound-insulation that would be needed for only a few hours of a voyage that would last for years.And his weight seemed enormous - yet it was barely a quarter of that which he had known all his life.Within minutes, Discovery had vanished astern, though the flash of its warning beacon could be seen until it had dropped below the horizon.Once again, Floyd told himself, I'm rounding Jupiter - this time gaining speed, not losing it.He glanced across at Zenia, just visible in the darkness with her nose pressed to the observation window.Was she also recalling that last occasion, when they shared the hammock together? There was no danger of incineration now; at least she would not be terrified of that particular fate.Anyway, she seemed a much more confident and cheerful person, undoubtedly thanks to Max - and perhaps Walter as well.She must have become aware of his scrutiny, for she turned and smiled, then gestured toward the unwinding cloudscape below.'Look!' she shouted in his ear, 'Jupiter has a new moon!'What is she trying to say? Floyd asked himself.Her English still isn't very good, but she couldn't possibly have made a mistake in a simple sentence like that.I'm sure I heard her correctly - yet she's pointing downward, not upward.And then he realized that the scene immediately below them had become much brighter; he could even see yellows and greens that had been quite invisible before.Something far more brilliant than Europa was shining on the Jovian clouds.Leonov itself, many times brighter than Jupiter's noonday sun, had brought a false dawn to the world it was leaving forever.A hundred-kilometre-long plume of incandescent plasma was trailing behind the ship, as the exhaust from the Sakharov Drive dissipated its remaining energies in the vacuum of space.Vasili was making an announcement, but the words were completely unintelligible.Floyd glanced at his watch; yes, that would be right about now.They had achieved Jupiter escape velocity.The giant could never recapture them.And then, thousands of kilometres ahead, a great bow of brilliant light appeared in the sky - the first glimpse of the real Jovian dawn, as full of promise as any rainbow on Earth.Seconds later the Sun leaped up to greet them - the glorious Sun, that would now grow brighter and closer every day.A few more minutes of steady acceleration, and Leonov would be launched irrevocably on the long voyage home.Floyd felt an overwhelming sense of relief and relaxation.The immutable laws of celestial mechanics would guide him through the inner Solar System, past the tangled orbits of the asteroids, past Mars - nothing could stop him from reaching Earth.In the euphoria of the moment, he had forgotten all about the mysterious black stain, expanding across the face of Jupiter.+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++49Devourer of WorldsThey saw it again the next morning, ship's time, as it came around to the dayside of Jupiter.The area of darkness had now spread until it covered an appreciable fraction of the planet, and at last they were able to study it at leisure, and in detail [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
