The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Red Hell of Jupiter, by Paul Ernst

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Title: The Red Hell of Jupiter

Author: Paul Ernst

Release Date: October 8, 2009 [EBook #30214]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE RED HELL OF JUPITER ***

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Transcriber's Note:

This etext was produced from Astounding Stories October 1931.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S.
copyright on this publication was renewed.

[Illustration: At this the titanic thing went wholly,
colossally mad.]

The Red Hell of Jupiter

_A Complete Novelette_

By Paul Ernst

* * * * *

CHAPTER I

_The Red Spot_

[Sidenote: What is the mystery centered in Jupiter's famous "Red
Spot"? Two fighting Earthmen, caught by the "Pipe-men" like their
vanished comrades, soon find out.]

Commander Stone, grizzled chief of the Planetary Exploration Forces,
acknowledged Captain Brand Bowen's salute and beckoned him to take a
seat.

Brand, youngest officer of the division to wear the triple-V for
distinguished service, sat down and stared curiously at his superior.
He hadn't the remotest idea why he had been recalled from leave: but
that it was on a matter of some importance he was sure. He hunched his
big shoulders and awaited orders.

"Captain Bowen," said Stone. "I want you to go to Jupiter as soon as
you can arrange to do so, fly low over the red area in the southern
hemisphere, and come back here with some sort of report as to what's
wrong with that infernal death spot."

He tapped his radio stylus thoughtfully against the edge of his desk.

"As you perhaps know, I detailed a ship to explore the red spot about
a year ago. It never came back. I sent another ship, with two good men
in it, to check up on the disappearance of the first. That ship, too,
never came back. Almost with the second of its arrival