that didn't.

At eight-twenty, Lockley went to the electronic base line instrument
which he was to use this morning. It was a modification of the devices
used to clock artificial satellites in their orbits and measure their
distance within inches from hundreds of miles away. The purpose was to
make a really accurate map of the park. There were other instruments
in other line-of-sight positions, very far away. Lockley's schedule
called for them to measure their distances from each other some time
this morning. Two were carefully placed on bench marks of the
continental grid. In twenty minutes or so of cooperation, the
distances of six such instruments could be measured with astonishing
precision and tied in to the bench marks already scattered over the
continent. Presently photographing planes would fly overhead, taking
overlapping pictures from thirty thousand feet. They would show the
survey points and the measurements between them would be exact, the
photos could be used as stereo-pairs to take off contour lines, and in
a few days there would be a map--a veritable cartographer's dream for
accuracy and detail.

That was the intention. But though Lockley hadn't heard of it yet,
something was reported to have landed from space, and a shock like an
impact was recorded, and all conditions would shortly be changed. It
would be noted from the beginning, however, that an impact equal to a
hundred-ton explosion was a very small shock for the landing of a
bolide. It would add to the plausibility of reported deceleration,
though, and would arouse acute suspicion. Justly so.

At 8:20, Lockley called Sattell who was southeast of him. The
measuring instruments used microwaves and gave readings of distance by