Jupiter

<b>How would you react to the discovery of intelligent alien life?</b><br /><br />John Campbell, arguably the best known editor in the history of science fiction, once demanded of his writers, <i>"Write me a story about an organism that thinks as well as a man, but not like a man."</i> Probably the best known successful response to that challenge was Stanley Weinbaum's pseudo-ostrich Tweel in <b>THE MARTIAN ODYSSEY</b>. It's only my opinion, of course, but I believe that Hal Clement's Mesklinites, the bizarre natives of a world of frozen methane and ammonia crushed with a gravity over 700 times that of earth also completed Campbell's imaginative challenge. <br /><br />But, that was then and this is now. If John Campbell were still alive, I'm sure he would agree that Leviathan, Ben Bova's sentient colossus swimming the storm tossed globe-girdling oceans of Jupiter, a planet so massive that it is within an ace of self-igniting into a star, would also qualify as a winner in his alien life-form fiction sweepstakes. <br /><br />As part of the continuing <b>GRAND TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE</b> series, <b>JUPITER</b> is certainly high falutin', rootin' tootin' space opera replete with all the high-tech gadgets, personalities, heroism and skulduggery that one would expect of any self-respecting member of this venerable sci-fi sub-genre. The basic plot idea is simple. It's the story of mankind's establishment of an experimental space station orbiting Jupiter, the development of research programs investigating Jupiter's large moons - Io, Ganymede, Europa, Callisto - and, ultimately, the first tentative exploration of the amorphous surface of Jupiter, the discovery of Jovian lifeforms and the realization that at least one of these species is sentient, intelligent and capable of communication. Bova has transformed a very basic scientific idea into an exciting plot-line with plenty of edge of the seat moments and lots of imaginative science that isn't entirely off the radar screen of credibility. <br /><br />But, for me, what really pulls <b>JUPITER</b> into the 5-star range is Bova's portrayal of the ultra-right wing religious opposition to this basic scientific research and the philosophical discussion of humanity's conflicted reaction to, first, the possibility and, finally, the reality of sentient extra-terrestrial life. <br /><br />Bova's <b>GRAND TOUR OF THE UNIVERSE</b> series is a continuing joy. Naturally, with such an extended series, some of the novels are much better or much worse than their siblings. <b>MERCURY</b>, for example, was much more soap opera than space opera. But <b>JUPITER</b> definitely fired on all cylinders and was an all out success. Highly recommended. <br /><br />Paul Weiss

Ben Bova’s planetary exploration series continues with <i>Jupiter</i>. Bova is so identified with “hard” science-fiction that I remember being surprised that he would posit life on Mars in one of the earliest books in this space exploration series. Yet, I ended up fascinated with the way he did so. In <i>Jupiter</i>, he deals with the issue in an even more speculative (and interesting) way. The search for intelligent life on Jupiter is fascinating, as are the results of this interesting mission to probe the sub-zero ocean of Jupiter. <br /><br />If you are unfamiliar with the series, the scientists (good guys) are constantly fighting a battle for survival (and funding) from the New Morality (bad guys) who believe that the scientists are trying to disprove God’s existence—much less God’s creation. <i>Jupiter</i> features a twist. The protagonist, Grant Archer, is the son of a Methodist pastor and he is asked to be a spy for the New Morality by taking an assignment aboard an orbital laboratory/space station above Jupiter. Needless to say, the bulk of the book deals with his struggle between faith and science. Both sides pretty well want him to see this as a dualism where one must decide one side or another. Archer demonstrates that this is a false dualism. Adding to the idea that this is a false dualism to which one must create a false dichotomy, Bova artfully uses scripture quotations throughout the novel to set up various key events. Indeed, there are even some verses from the Bible quoted in direct discourse, though these were merely presented as arguments among the characters—sometimes in context and sometimes quite out of context.<br /><br />The truth is that Bova has captured this struggle for the essence of humanity quite perfectly. The world is becoming ever more polarized, as illustrated by the fact that even as I was reading this book, several of the candidates for a major party’s nomination for President (at this point) have either enacted, ordered, or voted for some kind of action that curbs scientific endeavor on the basis of satisfying fundamentalist fanatics. And the only candidate in that group who seems to have a healthy attitude toward both science and religion is woefully close to last place in the polls. Perhaps, more people should read <i>Jupiter</i> in order to help both sides find some rapprochement. On second thought, it seems highly likely that fanatics would simply opt to quit reading.<br /><br /><i>Jupiter</i> is a novel with fascinating science mixed with speculation, story mixed with vignettes that frame the characters with background and motives, and an important message to the entire world about the importance of science. In <i>Jupiter</i>, Bova espouses the idea that religion and science can be compatible. Even if it wasn’t a terrific adventure, it would be worth reading just for that juxtaposition.<br />

This was awkwardly fun. It's tempting to compare JUPITER and Arthur C. Clarke's classic Space Odyssey novels, which are about the same planet, right off the bat, but Ben Bova here created a novel that's both self-aware of Clarke's masterpiece and that manages not to repeat anything it says. JUPITER is bold, imaginative (and utterly improbable) science-fiction, but it's also fun in a very blunt way, which is utterly different from classic humorless and convoluted sci-fi novel. Ben Bova always cuts to the chase and doesn't shy away from the cliché if it can make his point quicker, yet it created quite the idiosyncratic pleasure in JUPITER. A novel brimming with a youthful and boundless energy.

I originally skipped over this book in the chronological order and thought I had missed something by what happened in 'The Silent War'. Turns out what I was looking for wasn't here either. That's one of the problems reading books in chronological order rather than publication order. However, no harm done as this appears to be a stand alone, with little linking it the rest of the Grand Tour series. My best guess is that the info I was expecting to find here is in the book 'Saturn'.<br /><br />The story of an expedition into the clouds/seas of Jupiter to look for new forms of life. There's an interesting cast of characters, but I did not find them all totally believable. The speculative science did not have me 100% convinced, although interesting and detailed enough to keep me entertained. Some minor plot threads didn't seem to go anywhere in this book, but it's obvious there is a sequel 'Leviathans of Jupiter', so some of those may be set ups.<br /><br />Not one of my favorites of the series so far. Now I am going back to the chronological order to finish up the Asteroid Wars sub series with 'The Aftermath'. <br /><br />

After the first 8 books in The Grand Tour (<a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/267282.Mars__The_Grand_Tour___4_" title="Mars (The Grand Tour, #4) by Ben Bova" rel="noopener">Mars</a> in particular), <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/267334.Jupiter__The_Grand_Tour___9_" title="Jupiter (The Grand Tour, #9) by Ben Bova" rel="noopener">Jupiter</a> feels a bit odd at the start. We're not building up to the eventual discovery of life--the fact that there's life on Jupiter is presented fait accompli in the first chapters. And not only life... intelligent life (or so is claimed). Jupiter isn't really about the discovery of life or even really about the idea of life on a research station around Jupiter. <br /><br />What Jupiter is really about the conflict between religion and science as humanity continues to expand outwards into the solar system. The New Morality controls the politics of the Earth and is doing everything it can to control the solar system. In doing so, they send Grant Archer--a believer and an astrophysicist--to spy on what in the world is going on far out in the dark reaches of the solar system. There's conflict between science and religion, both on the large scale with the New Morality and the small scale within Grant himself, especially as he begins to settle in and befriend those living on Jupiter station. <br /><br />The other core of the book is a mission into the oceans of Jupiter itself. It's a strange but plausible feeling bit of technology, wherein the explorers are immersed in perfluorocarbon (an oxygen-rich liquid they can breath while allowing for much higher pressures) with implanted electrodes that allow them to connect directly to their ship and feel what it 'feels'. We're getting further into the future and from the science of today, but everything still feels reasonable enough (even life in the clouds of Jupiter...) to put Jupiter square into the realm of near future hard sci fi. Overall, very cool. <br /><br />The weakest parts of the story are a combination of side plots that don't really go anywhere and characters that seem to have no ability to say no. For the former, this could very well be the beginnings of what might bring uplifted gorillas or dolphins to the Grand Tour universe and I full expected them to be used on the mission at the very least... but nothing. In the case of the latter, there are several replacements to the very dangerous Jupiter atmospheric missions (which have already claimed lives) and... it doesn't seem like anyone chosen can say no. I don't really get it. It's just not even mentioned. <br /><br />Overall, I enjoyed the story. I do like the less political, more sciency stories of the Grand Tour (although none of them--this included--avoid politics entirely). I'm curious to see what will happen a handful of books from now when we get to <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/8730311.Leviathans_of_Jupiter__The_Grand_Tour___14_" title="Leviathans of Jupiter (The Grand Tour, #14) by Ben Bova" rel="noopener">Leviathans of Jupiter</a>.<br /><br />

This is definitely the best Grand Tour entry I've read so far. The exploration and discovery actually received a good bit of attention, the New Morality politics, irritating as always, was better balanced and actually had some menace. That said, it's a Bova book, and there were plenty of absurdly irritating characters, trite lines and a good amount of womanizing, and as usual for this author the actual focus on Jupiter as a planet was lacking.<br /><br />Four Stars is definitely an overly-high rating for Jupiter in its own right, but compared to the other Planetary entries in the Grand Tour I'll grant it the handicap.

Jupiter, by Ben Bova, was first published in 2001, and is part of Bova’s Grand Tour series, which deals with the exploration and colonization of the solar system by humans in the late 21st century. Grant Archer, a young astrophysicist grad student, is forced to accept his mandatory public service assignment at the scientific research station that orbits the planet Jupiter, where there is really no option to pursue his graduate study in astrophysics. He is even more unhappy that he was also chosen by the powerful New Morality to serve as a spy while at the Jupiter station because the scientists there are believed to be attempting to verify the existence of, and make contact with, a possibly intelligent life form on Jupiter. The New Morality sees any non-Earth life form (especially intelligent life form) as being a threat to their fundamentalist religious beliefs. In addition, Archer is married and his assignment to Jupiter will make it impossible for him to be with his wife for several years due to Jupiter’s great distance from Earth. Archer cannot refuse this assignment and he makes the year-long journey to the Jupiter station on a very slow cargo transport. Unexpectedly, he becomes a friend and colleague to the scientists on the Jupiter station, which makes him very uncomfortable with his orders to spy on them. Indeed, the scientists at the Jupiter station do believe they have encountered life forms in the extremely high-pressure environment of Jupiter’s planet-wide ocean. Furthermore, they are planning another mission into that dangerous environment to attempt to prove the existence of life on Jupiter and to learn more about that life. Archer ends up playing a very important role in this extremely dangerous mission. This book includes much plausible scientific information about Jupiter and its orbiting station, including fascinating descriptions of the planet, the station, and the craft used to carry the scientists into the Jupiter environment. It weaves a complex social and political climate on Earth and on the Jupiter station, while providing plenty of action and drama. It also includes very interesting, realistic, and likable (at least some are likable) characters in Archer and his colleagues. I really liked this book and I highly recommend it!<br />

For some reason, I prefer SF that includes alien contact, interesting new ecosystems, and the like. This was my first book by Bova, and I picked it up due to the mention of alien contact. After this one, I'm looking forward to the new book <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/8730311.Leviathans_of_Jupiter" title="Leviathans of Jupiter by Ben Bova" rel="noopener">Leviathans of Jupiter</a> and hope to learn more about the leviathans and their world.<br /><br />(Frankly, the space politics and tension between human beings, governments, and religions is much less interesting to me. I'm all about the 'Others'.)<br /><br />Why do evil fanatics always have to be Christian or Muslim? Can't we have some variety? I will note that the main protagonist uses his faith in a way that I respect--and recognize. That was a nice contrast. I like the way Bova points out at the end that the fanatics are using faith as a mechanism for gaining power. Nice separation and clarification there. I noticed and appreciated that.

I read this book on a whim. Having been looking for Larry Niven in the bookstore, I was first distracted by the cover. Our own solar system has always been interesting to me, and so I read the back. It simply felt vague, so I opened the book and read the short prologue. Suddenly, my opinion had changed a bit. It was written well, and sounded like it had the potential to be a great book. I found that it was, and really enjoyed the imagery, the foreign feel of it, and the way Bova wrote the perspective of the Jovians was enrapturing. He did a great job personifying every character, both protagonists and antagonists. Nobody was simply an evil dictator, everybody had a why to their way, and that greatly helped to make this book stand out amongst a decades long genre.

The weakest effort I have read from Mr. Bova. It was actually a struggle to finish. The "side" stories really slow the pace of the book down and since the "characters" in these little stories don't have a personality to speak of, it is difficult to care about them. They just interupt the book. It starts out fine and if you are a Bova fan, you can easily get into his world but it fails to entertain as the book progresses.