A Meeting with Medusa
Encyclopedia
A Meeting with Medusa is a science fiction
novella
by Arthur C. Clarke
. It was originally published in 1971 and has since been included in several collections of Clarke's writings.
Taking place partly on Earth
and partly in the atmosphere
of Jupiter
, the story tells of Howard Falcon, the captain of a new and experimental giant-sized helium-filled airship
. When an accident causes the ship to crash, Falcon is badly injured and takes over a year to fully recover.
Later, Falcon promotes an expedition to explore the atmosphere of Jupiter. After several years and many trials, the expedition is launched, with Falcon at the controls of the Kon-Tiki
, a hot-hydrogen
balloon-supported craft that descends through the upper atmosphere of Jupiter.
As the craft descends through the various cloud layers, Falcon discovers that the atmosphere supports at least two large forms of life, as well as microscopic and bioluminescent air plankton, producing atmospheric sea-fire. One form is a giant jellyfish
-like creature (the Medusa of the title) about one mile across, and the others are manta ray-like creatures about a hundred yards wide that apparently prey on the Medusa.
The Medusa begins to show an interest in the Kon-Tiki, and for his own and the expedition's safety, Falcon ignites his emergency power and escapes back into the upper atmosphere.
After his return, it is revealed to the reader that, because of the airship accident, much of Falcon's body was replaced by prosthetics, converting him into a cyborg
with increased speed and reactions, but leaving him feeling distanced from other humans.
series by Paul Preuss.
The concept of life on Jupiter was explored in Carl Sagan
's PBS series Cosmos
, which featured lifeforms similar in concept to those in this story.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
novella
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
by Arthur C. Clarke
Arthur C. Clarke
Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, CBE, FRAS was a British science fiction author, inventor, and futurist, famous for his short stories and novels, among them 2001: A Space Odyssey, and as a host and commentator in the British television series Mysterious World. For many years, Robert A. Heinlein,...
. It was originally published in 1971 and has since been included in several collections of Clarke's writings.
Plot summary
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
and partly in the atmosphere
Atmosphere
An atmosphere is a layer of gases that may surround a material body of sufficient mass, and that is held in place by the gravity of the body. An atmosphere may be retained for a longer duration, if the gravity is high and the atmosphere's temperature is low...
of Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
, the story tells of Howard Falcon, the captain of a new and experimental giant-sized helium-filled airship
Airship
An airship or dirigible is a type of aerostat or "lighter-than-air aircraft" that can be steered and propelled through the air using rudders and propellers or other thrust mechanisms...
. When an accident causes the ship to crash, Falcon is badly injured and takes over a year to fully recover.
Later, Falcon promotes an expedition to explore the atmosphere of Jupiter. After several years and many trials, the expedition is launched, with Falcon at the controls of the Kon-Tiki
Kon-Tiki
Kon-Tiki was the raft used by Norwegian explorer and writer Thor Heyerdahl in his 1947 expedition across the Pacific Ocean from South America to the Polynesian islands. It was named after the Inca sun god, Viracocha, for whom "Kon-Tiki" was said to be an old name...
, a hot-hydrogen
Hydrogen
Hydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. With an average atomic weight of , hydrogen is the lightest and most abundant chemical element, constituting roughly 75% of the Universe's chemical elemental mass. Stars in the main sequence are mainly...
balloon-supported craft that descends through the upper atmosphere of Jupiter.
As the craft descends through the various cloud layers, Falcon discovers that the atmosphere supports at least two large forms of life, as well as microscopic and bioluminescent air plankton, producing atmospheric sea-fire. One form is a giant jellyfish
Jellyfish
Jellyfish are free-swimming members of the phylum Cnidaria. Medusa is another word for jellyfish, and refers to any free-swimming jellyfish stages in the phylum Cnidaria...
-like creature (the Medusa of the title) about one mile across, and the others are manta ray-like creatures about a hundred yards wide that apparently prey on the Medusa.
The Medusa begins to show an interest in the Kon-Tiki, and for his own and the expedition's safety, Falcon ignites his emergency power and escapes back into the upper atmosphere.
After his return, it is revealed to the reader that, because of the airship accident, much of Falcon's body was replaced by prosthetics, converting him into a cyborg
Cyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
with increased speed and reactions, but leaving him feeling distanced from other humans.
Influence
The story was the inspiration for The Medusa Encounter, the fourth novel in the Venus PrimeVenus Prime
Venus Prime is a series of six science fiction novels written by Paul Preuss, based on characters and locations in Arthur C. Clarke's short stories....
series by Paul Preuss.
The concept of life on Jupiter was explored in Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan
Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, author, science popularizer and science communicator in astronomy and natural sciences. He published more than 600 scientific papers and articles and was author, co-author or editor of more than 20 books...
's PBS series Cosmos
Cosmos: A Personal Voyage
Cosmos: A Personal Voyage is a thirteen-part television series written by Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan, and Steven Soter, with Sagan as presenter. It was executive-produced by Adrian Malone, produced by David Kennard, Geoffrey Haines-Stiles and Gregory Andorfer, and directed by the producers, David...
, which featured lifeforms similar in concept to those in this story.