The Planetary series of stories by Stanley G. Weinbaum is series of short stories, published in Wonder Stories and Astounding Stories in the 1930s, which are set upon various planets and moons of the Solar System.
The stories are marked by attention to the detail of the alien ecosystems with which Weinbaum equips his planets. Though only a few of the stories share protagonists, there is enough shared detail between the stories to show that they belong to a common fictional universe. The birdlike Martians of "A Martian Odyssey" and "Valley of Dreams", for instance, are mentioned in "Redemption Cairn", and "The Red Peri" and the Venusian trioptes of "Parasite Planet" and "The Lotus Eaters" are mentioned in "The Mad Moon". In Weinbaum's Solar System, in accordance with the then-current near-collision hypothesis, the gas giants radiate heat, enough to warm their satellites to Earthlike temperatures, allowing for Earthlike environments on Io, Europa, Titan, and even Uranus. Mars is also sufficiently Earthlike to allow humans to walk its surface (with training in thin-air chambers) unprotected.
The series includes the following ten titles, in publication order:
| Title | Published in | Publication Date | Setting | Fictional date | Main characters | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "A Martian Odyssey" | Wonder Stories | 3407 !July 1934 | 4 !Mars | 2001 !early 2000s | Dick Jarvis, Tweel | |
| "Valley of Dreams" | Wonder Stories | 3411 !Nov. 1934 | 4 !Mars | 2002 !early 2000s | Dick Jarvis, Tweel | sequel to "A Martian Odyssey" |
| "Flight on Titan" | Astounding Stories | 3501 !Jan. 1935 | 6 !Titan | 2142* | Tim and Diane Vick | |
| "Parasite Planet" | Astounding Stories | 3502 !Feb. 1935 | 2 !Venus | 2098 !late 21st century | Hamilton Hammond, Patricia Burlingame | |
| "The Lotus Eaters" | Astounding Stories | 3504 !Apr. 1935 | 2 !Venus | 2099 !late 21st century | Ham & Pat Hammond | sequel to "Parasite Planet" |
| "The Planet of Doubt" | Astounding Stories | 3510 !Oct. 1935 | 7 !Uranus | 2100 | Ham & Pat Hammond | sequel to "The Lotus Eaters" |
| "The Red Peri" | Astounding Stories | 3511 !Nov. 1935 | 9 !Pluto | 2080 !ca. 2080 | Frank Keene, Peri Maclane | |
| "The Mad Moon" | Astounding Stories | 3512 !Dec. 1935 | 5.1 !Io | 2112 | Grant Calthorpe, Lee Neilan | |
| "Redemption Cairn" | Astounding Stories | 3603 !Mar. 1936 | 5.2 !Europa | 2111 | Jack Sands, Claire Avery | |
| "Tidal Moon" | Thrilling Wonder Stories | 3812 !Dec. 1938 | 5.3 !Ganymede | 2083 | Ben Amherst, Carol Kent | posthumous publication completed by Stanley Weinbaum's sister Helen |
Read more about Planetary Series: Chronology, Solar System, Characters, Bestiary, Places, Spaceships, Things
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