At dawn the next day he and Bud flew to the island base. The space kite was mounted on a small single-rocket stage to carry it up past the atmosphere.
“Wow!” Bud laughed in high spirits as he eyed the fragile craft. “My first ride on a kite!”
Tom’s face, however, was serious. They were about to embark on one of the most dangerous experiments he had ever tried!
CHAPTER XI
ADRIFT!
THE boys climbed the gantry supporting the rocket and entered the space kite through the hatch at the top of the reactor housing. Tom sealed the lid tight.
Then he and Bud settled into the pilot’s and copilot’s seats, slipped on headsets, and buckled their safety belts.
“This setup in here is really compact,” Bud commented admiringly. “Seems funny not to be strapped to couches, though.”
He realized this was because the kite, unlike other spaceships, did not have to attain a high velocity in a short time. Instead, it would be necessary to use rocket power only long enough to reach an area where cosmic radiation began.
Tom nodded. “There’s so little room in here we wouldn’t have space to lie down, anyhow. But we have everything we need-provided nothing goes wrong.”
96
ADRIFTI 97
The control panel stood in front of them, while underneath the tiny deck platform the kite’s air-conditioning equipment was stowed. There were also a tool kit, their space suits, and emergency stores.
The transparent dome enclosing the boys had been formed of a special plastic-and-glass composition, light in weight but almost as strong as quartz glass. It was also tinted to protect them from the sun’s rays.