Astounding Science Fiction, British Edition

Blind Man's Buff by Malcolm Jameson

This science-fiction novelette depicts a competitive race to explore Venus. Travis and Hartley pilot a ship equipped with "Maggy," an advanced magnetoscope using magnetic principles to penetrate the planet's dense atmosphere and map terrain—required by the Bureau of Genomics for staking valid claims. Numerous competitors descend simultaneously, including the massive Farrington-Driscoll syndicate deploying a fleet to overwhelm rivals through statistical probability. Most early entrants crash against hidden rocky outcrops or become trapped in turbulent regions. Travis deliberately hangs back, employing caution while Hartley operates the Maggy. The magnetoscope reveals a bizarre landscape: beneath a frozen cirrus layer lies what appears as a crystalline, heaving "sea" with jagged rocky islets arranged in chains—an ionospheric phenomenon that distorts standard radio communication. As Travis dives to investigate closer, the terrified assistant umpire Lorimer reports catastrophic losses among competing ships, with only one survivor struggling in violent conditions. The crew faces the unmapped planet's lethal challenges.