 What's ironic about the narrator's and Kroger's decision to sign on for the flight scheduled to Venus?
Illustrated by WOOD My agent was the one who got me the job of going along to write up the first trip to Mars. Trip time is supposed to take 260 days (that's one way), so we're aimed toward where Mars will be (had better be, or else). The inertial gravities didn't bother me so much as the gyroscopic spin they put on the ship so we have a sort of artificial gravity to hold us against the curved floor. Also, I am one of the first five men in the history of the world to see the opposite side of the Moon, with a bluish blurred crescent beyond it that Pat said was the Earth. I told him I hoped it didn't mean we'd land on Mars upside down.
 They were permitted to attend due to their 'experience,' but their experience created a major crisis on Earth
 The narrator is going to fabricate more events to make his story sound appealing to the general public  They have the least amount of technical experience compared to the other members of the Martian crew  They were permitted to attend due to their 'experience,' but their experience created a major crisis on Earth  The narrator's deadpan tone is not likely to convey the true excitement of the Venusian journey