Tom Swift and the Electronic Hydrolung

out of his mind and concentrated on the job at hand

y this time, the fused blip had long since disappeared from the radarscopes, indicating

move, Tom?" Admi

results," Tom decided. "Suppose Bud and I fly bac

nd don't feel downhearted, son. You rate a Navy 'E' for the way you handled this ope

ged a grateful grin, in sp

took them to an aircraft carrier standing by in the vicini

ocessing. Tom, looking back from the soaring jet, could see one of the heli

g experimental station was a walled, four-mile-square enclosure with landing strips, work-shops, and l

re Tom shared a double office with his father. Bud sank down into one of the deep-cushion

ts at the press of a button. At one end of the room were the video screen and control board of the Swifts' private TV networ

or our search expediti

w cut. "Let's see. We'd better take

com buzzed. Miss Trent, the Swi

calling over

n the signal of his private telephone.

uter results," Mr. Swift re

tude and longitude figur

findings," Mr. Swift went on, "this area is a high plat

bout th

red and three hundred feet,

histle. "Luc

ift said cautiously. "The bot

ace. "In that case, we ma

short discussion, the elder scientist added, "I'll probabl

" Tom hung up and rep

water gear will we

"Guess we'll have to take along a var

inform his mother of his arrival. Mrs. Swift was sympathetic

locate it," she s

with a grin. As he put down the receiver a moment later, he told Bud,

is lips. "Le

e details, after which Tom phoned the underground hangar and the Swifts' rocket base at F

ports car and drove to the Swifts' big, pleasant house on the outskirts o

were beginning to think you

you and that fried chicken a

winkled. "I know it's the fried ch

hat 'we' you were refe

said in a mournful voice

rom the kitchen. Brown-eyed, with long dark hair, Phyl was the daughter of Tom Sr.'s o

ing, did you, Tom?" she said, laughing. "

oys about their infrequent dates, du

nd greeted Bud warmly. Over the delicious dinner, the

uld have fired i

an one unfriendly country which would give a l

more trouble, are you?

nd the two girls. But inwardly he was none too sure of what his survey

ved in many daring exploits and thrilling situations. Time and again, Tom had had to c

Pole, and in other adventures he had faced danger in the jungles of Africa, New Guinea, and Yucatan. His latest achievement, receiving the visitor from Planet X, had been t

mammoth, atomic-powered airplane had been Tom's first major invention. A three-deck craft, it was equipped with complete laboratory facilities

f the equipment, a foghorn voic

n Texas, Chow was now head chef on Tom's expeditions. As usual, a ten-gallon ha

o end all shirt

latest Western creation. The shirt seemed to be made of

ng fer an ocean jaunt," Chow added with

he rest of this gear

a barren stretch of sand dunes and scrub-grass, the island was now the Swifts' top-secret rocket laboratory, guarded by drone planes and radar. It

t a sleek, strange-looking c

enclosed central rotor, powered by atomic turbines, with reversible-pitch blades for air l

m and Bud. One was Hank Sterling, the blond, square-jawed chief pattern-making engineer of Enterprises. The other

nk radioed. "

" Tom r

Already on hand were ships of the Navy task force assigned by Admiral Walter to participate in the missile sea

as yet no sign of the lost Jupiter prober had been d

ng to Slim Davis, a Swift test pilot who was in the crew

eased into th

?" asked Doc Simpson, Swif

he undersea elevator, and then assemble

," Doc p

ly descended to the Sea Hound. The search

each climbed into a Fat Man suit and went out through the air lock. The suits, shaped like huge ste

piercing the murky gloom. They saw nothing but the deep accumul

alled over his sonarphone

actually pushed the ocean water away. The air supply inside was kept pure by one of

atform, also proved inadequate for the research job. It

itself is our best

try," T

its powerful search beam sweeping the ocean floor as it pr

Bud, we could skin-

it a whirl

ngs. Then they dropped over the side and made their way slowly downward into th

Tom thought. "If only we didn't

. A projectile, Tom realized! Turning, his eyes

tank had