I know I’ve spent a few days brainstorming for the first Mars mission in my science-fictional alternate history, but already I can’t help but plot out things even further for the timeline of early spaceflight. In particular, after the first Mars landing in 1963, what … Continue readingAn Odyssey to the Outer Solar System?
Years ago I established that in my alternate-historical/science-fictional setting a Russian-led expedition is the first to reach Mars in 1963, 22 years after the first manned spaceflight, and 14 years after the first landing on the Moon. Now that I’ve written up the first flight … Continue readingWorldbuilding the First Mars Landing
Saudi Arabia has its vision for Neom, The Line, a futuristic linear city, but I think we can do far better right here in America: why not a Pacific Coast City, a contiguous urban corridor on the immediate coast of California? Coastal California is one … Continue readingLet’s Build Pacific Coast City!
There are few better nights than Halloween for memento mori, and I’ve been fascinated by the concept of the “doomsday shroud” for much of this year, and now I’ve got an idea for a post-apocalyptic yet heartwarmingly romantic universe. Picture this: at the end of … Continue readingA Romantic Apocalypse: Beyond the Doomsday Shroud
When researching for my post “The Final Frontiers of the Periodic Table” it struck me how dull the names of most of the chemical elements are, “something-something-ium”, a trend of uncreativity that’s worsened with the more recent discoveries of the transuranic and superheavy elements. Now, … Continue readingOn Etymologies of the Elements
Ah, the periodic table of the elements: that ubiquitous chart in the realm of chemistry. In the heady days of the 19th century new elements were being discovered, filling in the table left and right, culminating with the last discovery of a naturally-occurring stable element, … Continue readingThe Final Frontiers of the Periodic Table
Hot off a very enjoyable write-up of my story of my universe’s first lunar mission (1949, not 1969), and a more tentative write-up of my Rapunzel Reinhardt story (I was thinking of releasing the latter in June, the former in July, but I think now … Continue readingA Date in the Rusty Desert
For a while I’ve posited that the most cost-effective method of traveling on Mars, after you have some people there and some outposts going, is the “road train”, large motor vehicles hooked up in tandem, much like what we see in the Australian Outback, which, … Continue readingMonowheels of Mars?
I’ve previously written about survival strategies for nations and mankind “after the doomsday shroud”, the worst conceivable nuclear war. Which got me thinking about a fascinating piece of Cold War history: the “Deep Underground Command Center”, or “DUCC”. If civilian command and control of the … Continue readingDeep Underground Launch Center
At the end of “Dr. Strangelove”, the titular character says to the President “I would not rule out the chance to preserve a nucleus of human specimens”, proposing a plan (which he probably had on the shelf since the late Nazi years…) to dig out … Continue readingAfter the Doomsday Shroud