From masking to “social distancing” to what could best be described as “hygiene theater”, we have been told our lives must be up-ended, our pursuit of fulfillment stymied at every turn, to make us well, to ward off sickness, to keep us healthy. Yet aside … Continue readingFresh Air, Green Space, and Unsung Paths to Healthy Living
Click here for full resolution. This is my new graphic, and indeed my first artwork I’ve posted that isn’t (wholly) an oil painting, depicting a transit map of the solar system, like what might exist in my science fiction setting that has been host to … Continue readingTravel the Solar System at 1g
Space habitats and colonization are one of the topics I blog the most about, because I find it quite interesting. Why confine your civilization to a planet when there’s a whole universe out there filled with resources that you can turn into custom-made habitats fit … Continue readingOur Future in Space Habitats: More Thoughts
“The Hunt for Count Gleichen’s Treasure”, my first novel, is now published on Amazon! Click here to purchase the paperback version, or click here to purchase the ebook version. Having begun this book around two months ago, it feels like quite an achievement to have … Continue readingNew Book Released: The Hunt for Count Gleichen’s Treasure
When doing some research for my novel, which now stands at 19.557 words, the Venus chapter (12,949 words) having been completed yesterday, I did some calculations for how long spaceflight would take under constant acceleration, the method the main characters in my novel are using … Continue readingConstant Acceleration: Across the Solar System and Beyond
One of the most distinct characteristics of life in outer space is the lack of gravity pulling you and everything else down to the floor. Objects and people inside any structure launched into orbit will float around and experience zero gravity. This is not a … Continue readingArtificial Gravity in Outer Space: Centrifuges and Beyond
Solarpunk, a subversively optimistic genre of science fiction, has proven to be a breath of fresh air for our vision of the future over the past several years. As the latest major incarnation of the various “-punk” subgenres, it joins the likes of atompunk, clockpunk, … Continue readingToward Nuclearpunk: Solarpunk with a Twist
After the solar system is colonized, settled, and developed, interstellar colonization is the next step in mankind’s journey through the final frontier. The distances between planets within our own solar system are easily surmountable once enough space infrastructure is built out to allow the mass … Continue readingWorldbuilding Near-Future Interstellar Demography
When worldbuilding a science fiction or especially space opera setting, spaceships, starships, and the like are almost inevitably of great importance. In a visual medium the look of the ships can communicate a lot, the contrast between Padmé Amidala’s garage and Han Solo’s Millennium Falcon … Continue readingThe Shapes of Spaceships
In the previous post on colonizing the Oort cloud, I pointed out that with sufficiently cheap transportation technology any place within range will be inhabited to some extent by recreational-touristic populations or populations that deliberately seek out isolation. This outermost part of the solar system … Continue readingThe Sun as Gravitational Lens: A Breakthrough Technology?