Linear stability is investigated of a uniform chain of equal spherical gas bubbles rising vertically in unbounded stagnant liquid at Reynolds number Re = 50-200 and bubble spacing s > 2.6 bubble radii. The equilibrium bubble positions are questioned for their stability with respect to small displacements in the vertical direction, parallel to the chain motion. The transverse displacements are not considered, and the chain is assumed to be laterally stable. The bubbles are subjected to three kinds of forces: buoyant, viscous, inviscid. The viscous and inviscid forces have both pairwise (local) and distant (nonlocal) components. The pairwise forces are expressed by the leading-order formulas known from the literature. The distant forces are expressed as a linear superposition of the pairwise forces taken over several farther neighbours. The stability problem is addressed on three different length scales corresponding to: discrete chain (microscale), continuous chain (mesoscale), bubbly chain flow (macroscale). The relevant governing equations are derived for each scale. The microscale equations are a set of ODE's, the Newton force laws for the individual discrete bubbles. The mesoscale equation is a PDE for bubbles continuously distributed along a line, obtained by taking the continuum limit of the microscale equations. The macroscale equations are two PDEs, the mass and momentum conservation equations, for an ensemble of noninteracting mesoscale chains rising in parallel. This transparent two-step process (micro -> meso -> macro) is an alternative to the usual one-step averaging, in obtaining the macroscale equations from microscale information. Here, the scale-up methodology is demonstrated for ID motion of bubbles, but it can be used for behaviour of 2D and 3D lattices of bubbles, drops, and solids. It is found that the uniform equilibrium spacing results from a balance between the attractive and repulsive forces. On all three length scales, the equilibrium is stabilized by the viscous drag force, and destabilized by the viscous shielding force (shielding instability). The inviscid forces are stability neutral and generate conservative oscillations and concentration waves. The stability region in the parameter plane s - Re is determined for each length scale. The stable region is relatively small on the microscale, larger on the mesoscale, and shrinks to zero on the macroscale where the bubbly chain flow is inherently unstable. The shielding instability is expected to occur typically in intermediate Re flows where the vertical bubble interactions dominate over the horizontal interactions. This new kind of instability is studied here in a great detail, likely for the first time. Its relation to the elasticity properties of bubbly suspension on different length scales is discussed too. The shielding force takes the form of a negative bulk modulus of elasticity of the bubbly mixture. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.