Jupiter IV

Set in the 2070's, on the same past and future time track as The Man Who Conquered Mars and the soon to be released Titus Andronicus Scott, this story transports the reader billions of miles across the Solar System, from Earth, to Mars, to Jupiter and back again. With Augie Rodriguez, Boy Scout, Mars Colonist, mutineer, inventor, diplomat, chess player and math genius as your guide, you will learn more about the purpose of an alien structure discovered on Mars 25 years earlier, be present at the invention of a new propulsion system for spacecraft and at a revolution as the colonies break free of their Earth-side masters. Interwoven with interplanetary intrigue is the story of a young man whose strength of character is tested when he finds himself confronted with problems that would challenge the most world-wise. Enjoy the action, intrigue, romance and science that fill this exciting story. On a winter morning in 1958, the author watched the television broadcast of America's first satellite blasting off atop a Jupiter C rocket into the darkness above Cape Canaveral. From that moment, he was hooked on rockets and space travel; both what was being done and what could be done. As a youth he constructed a series of solid and liquid fuel rockets; on one occasion filling the house with smoke after conducting a static test in the basement. Future tests were banished to the back yard and while none of the rockets flew, their failures were spectacular. A disability, Math Deficiency Syndrome, limited his future as a professional engineer or scientist. Nonetheless, while making ends meet in mortgage banking, a field requiring only limited mathematical aptitude; Turnbull maintained his interest in Astronomy, as well as Physical and Planetary Science. He has constructed several telescopes, including one with a clock drive of his own design. As an amateur historian, amateur scientist, radical Libertarian, member of the NRA, occasional reader of the work of other Science Fiction writers and subscriber to the Scientific American, he is well positioned to opine on a variety of issues. In addition to Jupiter IV, Turnbull has written The Man Who Conquered Mars and several short stories including: Campout at Crystal Cavern and Colonial Scout. A novella, Titus Andronicus Scott will be published in 2011. Information is available at www.dougturnbull.com