Exceptional short story Random Rhyme and Petty Prose : Robot On the Ground by Bill Schott

An equatorial landing placed Robot 3.7 kilometers beneath the Pacific Ocean in what had been known as the Mariana Trench. Within days, while employing sonar and seismic probing, Robot traversed to Molly Deep of the Arctic Ocean, Puerto Rico Trench of the Atlantic Ocean, South Sandwich Trench of the Southern Ocean, the Diamantina Trench of the Indian Ocean. From those points, fanning 360 degrees, Robot found no life beneath the ocean floor or across the silent seas. Breaking the surface, Robot projected a force field trapping ambient gases within a two-million-liter bubble. All gas except helium was then expelled, resulting in a lifting of Robot from the water and above the terrain.   Piloting across the continents, Robot scanned with every frequency available. Nothing caused a return signal.    Having completed the global scan, Robot transmitted the data.    Then -- a ping.             Recognized Author Notes Image from Google

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