"Clear platform one," Shem called into his radio, "we will be losing eye line contact in three minutes. All systems currently functioning appropriately." The platform called back, verifying both Shem's report and the current readings surrounding the module.
As the Great Pendulum plunged ever deeper towards the eye of the storm, the lone human on this great planet turned on his rear view monitors, and shuddered unconsciously as the center of all human civilization - and life! - faded away in the Jovian atmosphere.
As the chatter from his post-release procedures faded into the background of his subconsciousness, Shem found stared unblinking at the sight that filled every millimeter of his field of view: Jupiter and the Great Red Eye. As he fell, irreversibly, towards the tempests' of a billion years his computer systems whirred away taking measurements, ensuring stability and monitoring Shem's own vital signs.
"Cosmonaut Aglig, everything okay? Your heart rate and blood pressure have raised steadily over the past several minutes," his radio called, bringing him out of his daze. "Everything is fine. Seeing the approach of storms that are bigger than entire planet is... unnerving to say the least," he replied while trying to distract himself from the scene playing out before his vessel. "Should you prefer, we can turn on the view dampeners, so you won't have to watch the entire - "
"No," Shem interrupted mission control without hesitation. "I want to see this. I need to see this," as he turned his eyes back outward, this time with steely determination. "The terrible looming procella of this magnificent titan will not deter me, we proceed as planned."
And so, for the next several hours, Shem Aglig watched as the gargantuan swirls of clouds and violent upheavals of colorful vapor beckoned him tauntingly. Shem Aglig was a tiny man, heading straight into the terrifying eye of the solar system.
The Great Pendulum was originally commissioned by the United Authority of the Earth, Luna and Europa in the year 2935 as a means to test 'scooping' gas out of the Terrible Titan Jupiter to fuel long term space voyages. Using the Jovian gravity to pull the pendulum down and out of it's grasp would save energy and ensure better monitoring capabilities from the Lagrangian pivot point set impossible far away - but physically tethered to the Pendulum itself.
By 2940, exploits in quantum gravity discoveries helped to lead, laterally, to the discovery of the dark energy drive - allowing enclosed vehicles to bypass the speed of light by riding the wave of expanding space, pulling and pushing them to their interstellar destinations at a mind bending pace. The Great Pendulum was now going to be a one-off, exploration mission. It didn't take long for the main Pendulum to be re-engineered from the 'ground' up to include one pilot. Man was going to visit Jupiter's Great Red Eye in person in 2953.
The main cockpit, officially called the Science Module, was set 100 meters from the front of the vessel, with layers of water shielding and a nuclear centrifuge (to power the G-Suppressor, which was designed to divert some of the g-forces away from the pilot) and 100 meters of precisely cut CarbonCompress to allow for clear, crisp view through the front and rear should any exterior cameras fail.
As the great lattice pressure cage encloses the Science Module, Cosmonaut Shem Aglig completes his third and final round of system checks before the countdown to release commences, and he becomes to second man to ever breach the Jovian atmosphere.
