02496cam a22003613u 450000100060000000300070000600500170001300600020003000700050003200800410003704000110007804100170008905000070010610000320011324500230014526400510016830000470021933600260026633700260029233800360031849000530035450000310040750801080043852013250054653400450187165300200191665300180193665300360195470000310199083000530202185600430207499900170211751168UtSlPG20260610134158.0mcr n260607r2016||||utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d  aUtSlPG 7aen2iso639-1 4aPS1 aDel Rey, Lester,d1915-199310aOperation Distress 1aSalt Lake City, UT :bProject Gutenberg,c2016  a1 online resource :bmultiple file formats  atextbtxt2rdacontent  acomputerbc2rdamedia  aonline resourcebcr2rdacarrier1 aProduced from Galaxy Science Fiction August 1951  aRelease date is 2016-02-10  aProduced by Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net  a"Operation Distress" by Lester Del Rey is a science fiction novel written in the early 1950s. The narrative revolves around the challenges faced by Bill Adams, the first space pilot to Mars, who returns home only to find himself afflicted by an unknown and potentially fatal ailment. The book explores themes of isolation, fear of the unknown, and the fragility of human existence in the vastness of space.  In the story, Bill Adams embarks on a mission to Mars but experiences severe itching and a mysterious rash during his journey back to Earth. As he grapples with the realization that he might have contracted an alien disease, the tension escalates when Earth authorities decide to quarantine him on the Moon to prevent any potential contamination. With a young, inexperienced doctor arriving to aid him, the narrative captures his physical and emotional turmoil. Eventually, it is revealed that Bill's symptoms result from an allergic reaction to cat fur, rather than a grave disease, highlighting both the absurdity of his plight and the unpredictability of space missions. The story concludes with Bill's shift from a potential hero to a man eager to keep his embarrassing ordeal a secret, ultimately blending humor with the serious undertones of space exploration. (This is an automatically generated summary.)  nOriginal publication data not identified  aScience fiction  aShort stories  aSpace flight to Mars -- Fiction1 aEmshwiller, Ed,d1925-1990 0aProduced from Galaxy Science Fiction August 195140uhttps://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/51168  c92006d92006