10
Thee thirteenth “day” saw them nearing Mars rapidly. The ruddy-hued planet gleamed at them with magnificent brilliance, its cold glitter thrilling them and filling them with vague misgivings.
At this distance it became apparent that Professor Palmer’s feverishly corrected course would carry the Sphere at least several thousand miles ahead of the planet. This variation was to be expected, however; the miracle of it was that he had been able to judge direction so closely in those few nerve-racking and never-to-be-forgotten moments in the reeling Sphere.
Fearing to disturb the steady course and velocity of the Sphere, and content so long as they were still nearing the planet, they made no effort to utilize the disk’s power yet. Professor Palmer estimated that they were approaching Mars at a rate of 100,000 miles an hour. Already they were within some 3,000,000 miles of it, compared with the original distance of roughly 35,000,000 miles.
Brighter and brighter shone the mysterious planet with the passage of each watch. With the rapid reduction of the intervening distance, a faint restoration of gravitation began to be felt. Even in this extremely weak form it proved a very welcome relief to the weary Spherites. No longer did they float about like gas-filled balloons, though walking was still a difficult feat.
The beginning of the fourteenth “day” found them within a few hundred thousand miles of Mars. The Sphere’s course had now mechanically corrected itself as anticipated by the professor, and they were “falling” directly toward the planet. All eyes were now kept eagerly trained upon it through the observation well. Its spreading disk almost entirely filled the glass-enclosed tube. The professor watched it with boyish excitement, as feature after feature developed with their swift approach.
Indeed, the planet presented an awe-inspiring and wonderful sight.
Its great, snow-white polar caps, and vast, rose, rich ocher and purplish-bronze expanses between these caps surpassed in grandeur anything their eyes had ever beheld. Crossing and recrossing these expanses or plains was a curious network of straight and some slightly curved, dark-hued lines. All of these lines appeared to originate at the edges of the polar caps, or to connect indirectly with them by means of juncture with other lines. The northern or smaller cap was surrounded by a border of deep, bluish tint. This cap had shrunken noticeably even during their recent observation. Professor Palmer attributed this phenomenon to the advanced summer in the northern hemisphere, accompanied by a melting of that polar cap and an accumulation of water around it from which the “canals” were fed.
At numerous junctures dark spots occurred. The whole presented much the appearance of a crude map, upon a globe, of some gigantic railroad system, the dots representing the terminals or large cities. Several of the lines were double, running parallel with startling regularity and joining together again at the terminals. The northern extremities of the “canals” were now plainly darker than elsewhere, and strengthened the professor’s well-known theories regarding the purpose of the “canals.”
Another outstanding feature was certain large, bluish-green blotches interrupting the general rose-and-ocher hue of the plains. Some of the lines ended in these blotches. Wherever this occurred there was a caret-shaped junction, the line connecting directly at the point of the caret. At this point the color was deepest; from there it faded, gradually changing in color, the blotch blending into the ocher plain.
All of these features stood out in increasing vividness as the strange planet drew nearer, proving that the Martian atmosphere contained little or no moisture in the form of clouds. With the further expansion of the surface beneath them, new and fainter lines were discovered. The great disk had by this time grown so large that its outer edges could be viewed readily from the sloping ports.
The professor compared painstakingly the actual features of the planet before him with his own maps of it, the result of years of faithful observation and study at the lonely California observatory, that an ever-skeptical world might be further enlightened. The sight of him poring intently over his maps and notes, oblivious for the while of all else, was not without a certain pathos. At last, he stood at the threshold of vindication.
“Gosh,” ejaculated the redhead, breaking a long silence with startling abruptness, “I hope we don’t drop into that snow on the north pole there.”
“We can land at any point we prefer, old man,” Robert assured him.
“That happens to be the south pole, my friends,” said the professor, referring to the large polar cap over the edge of which the Sphere then hung. “See, the planet has been turning this way—toward what we shall call the east, which makes this pole the south.”
“Give me the desert,” replied Taggert, indulging in the luxury of a shiver.
“From the looks of things,” said Robert, “we shall have all the desert we want. That ocher shade seems entirely too popular. It makes me thirsty to look at it.”
The gyrostats had been started again for safety as they drew near the planet, and the Sphere’s comet-like velocity retarded by cautiously focusing the disk in the opposite direction temporarily.
A deflection of the disk swung the Sphere away from the pole and nearer the Martian equator. With the possibility of landing within a few hours, a keen watch was kept for the most promising region in which to land.
“If our belief that Mars is inhabited be correct,” said Robert, “it may be well to avoid the population centers. The Martians may fear that we are seeking to do them harm with some machine of destruction, and destroy us.”
“That’s a good suggestion,” exclaimed Taggert. “It would be just like one of those dudes to take a crack at us with some kind of a howitzer for luck.”
“Let us first fly over the surface at a safe height and examine it carefully, then select a landing site,” suggested Professor Palmer. “If it seems to be inhabited we had best land outside some smaller village where we will have an opportunity to interview a few of the natives without so much danger of being overpowered if they prove antagonistic.”
Sluggishly, the vast map slid westward before their gaze, in panoramic review as the planet rotated in its axis. Thus its entire surface from pole to pole was gradually presented to their view as they continued to descend at a considerably reduced speed.
The fifteenth “day” found them within about 25,000 miles of the planet’s surface. At this elevation Professor Palmer commenced a sharp lookout for the two moons which were known to revolve about Mars at great speed. These moons had been glimpsed on rare occasions by a few of the earth’s astronomers through powerful telescopes, but only when conditions for observation had been ideal. Professor Palmer had seen them more than once, although they were each approximately but ten miles in diameter, as he explained to Robert and Taggert.
“Ten miles?” repeated Taggert, doubtfully. “Why—dammit, these blamed Martian moons aren’t much more than balls of mud! Say, I’d rather have our moon than half a dozen like those. Ours is more than 2,000 miles in diameter, isn’t it?”
“You must remember that the Earth’s moon is about 240,000 miles away from it, while Mars’ nearest moon is only about 3,700 miles above its surface.”
“How high is the other one?”
“Approximately 13,000 miles; but it is doubtful whether it would be visible to the naked eye from Mars—certainly not plainly. The one nearer Mars, however, should present an interesting spectacle from that planet. It requires eleven hours to cross Mars’ heavens, by reason of the moon’s own swift revolution and the slower rotation of Mars, going through all its phases and half again during that time.”
“It’s odd that it doesn’t fall into the planet from that height,” said Robert.
“Rapid revolution in its orbit round Mars produces sufficient centrifugal force to balance the planet’s attraction,” said Professor Palmer. “The same principle is involved as in the swinging of a pail of water over one’s head without spilling it. Yet, some day one of these moons may be drawn into the planet. Should that happen, the blow may be great enough to change the planet’s own orbit.”
“How about landing on one of these moons?” said Robert.
“Ha! Novel thought, that,” exploded Taggert. “Say, if we’d play catchers on it, we would be apt to run right off.”
“I don’t think catchers would be a very good game to play on these moons,” chuckled Professor Palmer. “You see, a person wouldn’t weigh much more than a feather on one of them, and if he took a real good leap on the under side he might find himself on his way to Mars. Not only that; there is no atmosphere on them, and you could not exist an instant in the vacuum and intense cold prevailing there, even if you were equipped with respiration tanks.”
“That’s enough for me,” Taggert decided with a grimace.
“How cold do you think it is out in space like that?” asked Robert.
“Absolute zero—the nadir of temperature—is said to be 459 degrees below zero Fahrenheit.”
“Enough, enough,” shouted Taggert. “I said I was satisfied without getting out on a moon.”
“There’s Deimos over there now,” cried the professor suddenly, pointing.
“Don’t know the lady,” commented the reporter. Nevertheless he looked interestedly, and a trifle uneasily in the direction indicated.
“Deimos, or ‘Fear,’ is the moon farthest from Mars; Phobus, meaning ‘Panic,’ is the other,” the professor explained.
Off toward the northwest, just beyond the outer rim of the planet, a small star was suspended. It appeared much like any ordinary star in spite of its small bulk, for it was much closer than the vastly larger stars which we are accustomed to see.
“Now we must keep clear of that one, and watch closely for the other,” cautioned Professor Palmer.
At an elevation of about 3,000 miles nothing of the other moon had been seen, and it was concluded that it was then on the opposite side of the planet. But they were soon to find out their mistake—one that nearly proved fatal.
It happened while all three were intent upon the nearing planet, which presented a sight of such interest that even Professor Palmer had temporarily forgotten his own recent warning.
Their sole warning was a sudden cessation of the sun’s rays. Darkness reigned, except for the reflection from the Martian disk below. The abruptness of it made them gasp in unreasoning terror.
Above and around them the blackness of space was unbroken. The sun seemed simply to have gone out completely. Only the vivid sight of Mars reassured them.
“The moon!” yelled Taggert, first to think of it.
Hard on the heels of the realization of what had caused the sudden darkness came to Robert and Professor Palmer the knowledge that the satellite must be dangerously close to them. Otherwise, its small diameter would not have so completely hidden the sun from them. Passing between them and the sun, there was no longer danger of its crashing into them, but it was not entirely improbable that it might attract the Sphere toward it, with disastrous results.
Almost the next instant they were plunged again into the joyous rays of the sun. All of this had happened in a few seconds’ time, but to their startled minds it had seemed much longer. Looking up furtively they had glimpsed, for just a moment, a slice of blackness slipping from the edge of the sun. The miniature satellite had passed from their vision into the sightless black background of space. But, no; there was something there!
The reflection from Mars produced a barely perceptible glow upon the jagged face of the big ball above them. It reminded Robert exactly of the faint, broken reflection of lantern light on the ceiling of a large chamber in a cave which he had once explored. There was something threatening and terrifying about the rapidly dissolving apparition.
“I’ve seen enough of that baby,” sighed Taggert. “Oy, let’s go down on Mars and meet some nice, fresh cannibals before we hook up with another one of those things.”
“As a matter of fact, my esteemed friend, we are still scurrying toward yon cannibalistic region to the tune of some thousand miles an hour,” volunteered Robert, adopting Taggert’s vernacular.
The curious lines and dots now stood out vividly on the ocher-tinted background. So obviously of artificial origin did they appear that neither Taggert nor Robert entertained any further doubts as to the planet’s being inhabited. Soon they were all three engrossed in a discussion concerning the probable appearance of these remarkable people, who were engaged in a desperate struggle for life against the waning of their world.
“I think they are a race of giants, because no people of ordinary strength could succeed in constructing such a vast system of canals,” Taggert suggested.
“I’ve heard it claimed that the Martians are probably a race of smaller stature than ourselves, in proportion to the size of their planet,” said Robert.
“On the other hand, I think it quite probable,” said the professor, “that these people are much like ourselves, in size as well as formation. That they possess extraordinary intelligence I feel certain, for they are a far older race than our own, and their wits have doubtless been sharpened by their ceaseless combat with nature.”
“Then you believe that their unusual skill, and not physical strength, has enabled them to achieve these wonderful feats!”
“Not entirely. The force of gravity at the surface of Mars is approximately but three-eighths of that on the Earth. The result is that a being of our strength on Mars would be capable of about seven times as much work as on Earth. For example, he could dig a trench on Mars seven times as long as he could one of the same size on the Earth in the same length of time. The weight of the soil, of his arms and body, would be much less than on Earth, and the ratio of his strength over the reduced task would be augmented greatly.
“Then again, haunted, century after century, by the specter of extinction, the Martians would doubtless invent all manner of marvelous contrivances for the accomplishment of their gigantic tasks. Necessity has probably goaded them to a frenzy of invention and research.”
“Don’t you think it more likely that the ‘canals’ are really giant underground ducts! I should think long, open waterways would allow most of the water to evaporate before it had reached the ends,” said Taggert.
“I do. However, the popular conception of the word ‘canal,’ is that of an open waterway, whereas any duct, passage or groove, may properly be termed a canal.”
“But such canals or tubes would not be visible from the Earth, surely,” reasoned Taggert.
“Certainly not; but the vegetation which they fed would be. That is evidently why, with the melting of the polar caps, the lines have been observed to deepen in color with the season. I believe this indicates the quickening of the growths in the strips of irrigated ground along the ‘canals,’ the rate of progression observed being about fifty-one miles a day.”
“How do you account for that? Gravity could scarcely be responsible, for there would be no more reason to expect all water to run from the poles to the equator on Mars than to expect the same thing to happen on Earth.”
“Exactly. The Martians must have some unusual method of pumping the water through these canals.”
Robert, who had often discussed these details with Professor Palmer during the past months, was more interested right then in the probable characteristics of animal life on the planet, and particularly the people. Were they brown-skinned or white, hairy or smooth, with features like our own, or different? He had not forgotten his curious vision of the Martian desert, nor the spell cast over him by the maiden in his dream. She had been neither brown nor ugly. He wished earnestly that the Martians would be like her. These were the thoughts that ran through his mind as he watched the vast fairyland developing beneath him.
By this time the planet’s disk had spread until it formed a low horizon on all sides. Although they were less than a thousand miles distant, the planet’s surface still appeared to be quite level. No indication of mountain ranges could they detect from this height. At an elevation of about three hundred miles Robert checked the velocity of the Sphere further for fear of excessive atmospheric friction. For they should soon be entering the enter edge of the planet’s envelope of gases.
The poles were no longer visible, being lost beyond the rising horizon, as the Sphere was now almost directly over the equator. The planet continued to revolve before their eyes. So long as the Sphere remained beyond the envelope of atmosphere, they were independent of Mars’ rotation.
“Better follow the spin of the planet now, Robert,” said Professor Palmer.
A deflection of the disk soon gave them the desired easterly drift. Gradually, the vast panorama beneath them came to rest.
As they continued to descend, a slight glow began to replace the blackness of space. This indicated the presence of some atmosphere round them. At this point they observed the first sign of vapor upon Mars. A solitary patch of opalescence partly covered one edge of a large, dull-green blotch a little to the northeast of them.
Here and there a certain roughness about the surface of the planet seemed to represent slightly hilly regions, but such places were scarce. The planet’s predominating characteristic appeared to be a monotonous flatness.
The “canals” had now become broad, bluish-green bands, terminating in large circular areas of a similar shade. Robert could almost imagine he saw tree-tops.
Little was said as the Sphere approached the planet’s surface. Each was thrilled with his own imagination and excitement over the immediate prospect of viewing, at close range, the mysterious planet which had so long baffled the experts of the world. Robert retained perfect, skilful control of the Sphere, aided by advice from Professor Palmer as the latter studied the distant Martian landscape intently. Taggert busied himself making notes.
The sky had now taken on a normal glow like that of the Earth’s, and for the first time they felt that they were finally and definitely within the boundaries of the Martian world. The character in detail of the country below was now faintly visible. The earlier suggestion of some moderately hilly regions was emphasised by the setting sun, a low, but ragged, ridge appearing off toward the northwest. It was plain that if they wished to land by daylight there was little time to lose.
There was no longer any doubt as to the artificial character of the planet. One of the great “oases” extended toward the northeast to the now restricted horizon. From this, and almost directly beneath them, ran a broad belt of mottled green, continuing toward the southwest till lost to view.
The altimeter now registered 60,000 feet. However, they were, no doubt, much closer to the surface than this, as the atmospheric pressure on Mars was certain to be considerably less than that on Earth; in fact, their height did not appear half that great.
“Not much choice about a landing point,” commented Taggert. “This country looks more like the Sahara every minute.”
Indeed, there was an uninviting monotony about the landscape. With exception of the dark belt, and the oasis on the horizon, the entire country seemed one vast desert. The Sphere drifted slowly, as Robert had now checked its descent almost entirely.
“I think we had best land about five miles beyond the canal belt,” said Professor Palmer. “We ought to be safe there from any sudden attack, should the inhabitants prove hostile. More likely we will there be visited by a cautious few where both parties will have an opportunity to look each other over carefully before making any overtures.”
This seeming a sound piece of advice, the Sphere was steered several miles to the north of the belt. Here Robert allowed it to settle slowly.
The sun was sinking into the horizon even as the Sphere came to rest in the loose, yellow sand of the desert, about two hundred miles south of the equator. The trip to Mars was a reality!