Latest blog post: Chapter 7 is coming. (2025-10-10)
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The antigrav technology - and orbital barges that heavily utilize it - was the singular thing that allowed sapient species of the galaxy to begin their proper Space Age, providing an efficient, gentle, and reliable way to get huge amounts of mass through the most challenging part of any space flight - getting out of the planetary gravity well. While in a lot of cases the discovery of virtual mass generation was greatly accelerated by the study of the artifacts of the Ancients, it was not directly copy-engineered from them, and thus, antigravs are not a black box technology, unlike hyperspace generators that allow FTL travel.
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Comments (6)
"The upcoming visit of heads of state to the alien mothership" implies that roughly 200 human heads of state are going to visit the Dawn. But the exact number of "sovereign" states is uncertain and disputed in some cases. It could become a major diplomatic incident, so I hope the Alliance has a fair and well-defined standard that Earth is willing to accept.
They could continue to look primarily at the UN, and ask the holders of an official seat in the General Assembly to nominate a representative for the tour.
... or they could go with "everyone's welcome, we'll discuss the validity of your claim before you get a trip back" ... :-3
Lets hope they keep them...As a symbol of friendship between our races!
No no...No backsies ....
Oh, international water. A very simple but very effective solution to create a neutral embassy toward the the entire planet. Nice.
Talk about boat diplomacy.
Considering that the fleet wasn't expecting to find a new sophont species (and thus had only the one xenospecialist aboard), what exactly was the material for that artificial island meant to be hauled along and used for ... ?
And ... the row of "glass" panes above the "It" in panel five ... is that the barge's bridge? If so, I suppose I can forget about seeing a Raharr (or other alien) walking around the "materials deck" to get an idea of the scale.
It wasn't hauled, the mothership has industrial capabilities, and the OG purpose for platforms like the one being constructed was to establish research outpost bridgeheads on waterworlds.
Probably have giant 3D printers that can mold titanium... Then again even Earth has a titanium 3d printer now. Although Nanobots introduce even more amazing possibilities for parts construction.
Honestly makes more sense to carry "printers" and refined materials for printing than a huge stockpile of every part you may or may not need. I think they're already starting to look into it for space and satellites with the notion they can save on volume for the launch by sending raw materials up for printers that construct a large satellite in space, or multiple satellites.
I have this image in my mind of the barge and/or crane operator being some equivalen of an old sea dog or worker with a pipe in his mouth, working the thing like its second nature.
Atlantic makes sense. You have America, Europe and Africa. I'm sure China and Asia in general might feel left out, but its the best location to be central to more regions.
Raharr saltie: [rolling on the floor after seeing the reporter's choice of (not quite the usual) oilskin]
It was either the Atlantic, the Pacific, or the Indian, and they had to pick one. Maybe they chose the Atlantic because it's relatively close to the UN headquarters in New York City? Or maybe there are some countries that said they don't want the Alliance barge near them? Or maybe it will be a floating island that can migrate to different places over time, and they just chose the Atlantic as a starting place?
for a second that looked like a load of missiles!
(Ape-brain jumping at shadows at work here)
I bet some surface-dweller spotting that thing while still in
orbit went straight to "brown alert"
One half of the US DOD/Government: "Hey, those look like missiles!"
The other half: "Hey those look like oil drilling platforms! They're coming for our oil!!"
Both possibilities will certainly raise som hackles!
A couple years later, mankind found that the (to the Alliance) interesting part of the planet wasn't anything in the crust, much less mundane crude oil, but the asthenosphere.
[cue much rejoicing by the hollow-Earthers]
What makes you think they aren't?
Off the continental shelf (which usually doesn't have neutral waters above it), the Atlantic is several kilometers deep, and there was no mention of it being a floating (or moored) island¹. Which would mean that they'll have to send the foundations down to the seafloor, and have them embed themselves into it ...
(¹ If I were to send a floating island to Earth to serve as an embassy, I'd reserve the "right" to have it travel across the high seas to wherever it can best serve its purpose, rather than announcing a fixed position once and for all.)
... of course, the other possibility is that these are just floating fenceposts, to erect a perimeter keeping nosy humans out of the "construction site" as the really big machinery makes planetfall ...
(I'm not aware that existing int'l maritime law would give anyone a legal standing to just declare a part of neutral waters off limits to everyone else, so the Alliance would IMHO need to signal "keep out and stop getting underfoot!!" itself.)
We have floating oil platforms held in place with steering motors. An advanced civilization should have the power to park one anywhere it chooses with no trouble .
That's what I tried to address in the last paragraph: Why would they announce a fixed position "in the neutral waters of the Atlantic" if they can actually move it, even after the fact, "anywhere they choose"?