The nuclear submarine Seaview must stop a punctured radiation belt from slow-cooking the Earth. The nuclear submarine Seaview, designed and owned by billionaire Admiral Harriman Nelson, is on diving trials in the Arctic. Upon surfacing, they discover that the sky is on fire. After rescuing scientist Miguel Alvarez and his dog, they receive a radio communication that the Van Allen Belt has been punctured by a meteor shower, resulting in a drastic, global heat wave.
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At an Emergency Scientific UN meeting, Nelson and his friend, retired Commodore Emery, agree that that in three weeks the heat wave will be unstoppable. Nelson and his friend, retired Commodore Emery, figure that the best solution is to fire a nuclear missile from the Marianas at 1600 hours on August 29. Even though the plan is rejected as being too risky, Nelson and Emery take the Seaview to the destination.
An attempt is made on Nelson's life as he tries to contact the President. the prime suspects are Alvarez, who has become a religious fanatic, and Dr. Susan Hiller, who had been brought on board to study crew-related stress. She agrees with those who rejected Nelson's plan.
While trying to reach the President via the Rio-to-London telephone cable, a giant squid has to be fended off. A minefield destroys a mini-sub, and another submarine unsuccessfully tries to torpedo the Seaview, and a near-mutiny rears its ugly head.
When Dr. Hiller turns out to be the saboteur, she exposes herself to a terminal dose of radiation. She falls into a shark tank and is killed by a shark. The Seaview reaches the Marianas, and the missile is fired despite Alvarez's objections. The world is saved as the missile explodes the flames outward.
Best part of story, including ending:
The race against time to save the world, the nuclear submarine itself, and that it had just enough obstacles (giant squid, octopus, enemy submarine, near-mutiny) to keep things going even by today's standards.
Best scene in story:
The scene with the giant octopus. It was a bit repetitive, since earlier a giant squid almost killed the captain, but it was cool how an electrical charge sent through the Seaview's outer hull subdued the octopus.
Opinion about the main character:
I liked that he was bent on saving the world even if some people thought he would inadvertently destroy it out of desperation. I didn't like that he hit a sailor, but the sailor was just being checked out in sick bay.
