These are all electric vehicles. It's much less of a hassle to charge equipment from the same energy system everything else uses, than manufacture or import algae ethanol.
Transcript
Talita: Uh, I'll try...
She walks into the vehicle hanger of the plant and starts preparing for the day's outing. She unplugs a modular frontloader and leans into the cockpit to press some controls inside. Her foretoso is about the same size as the entire chair in the vehicle. Talita then uses a remote to control the frontloaders and line them up ready for use.
30 thoughts on “Runaway to the Stars: Page 83”
Sio
overalls talita my beloved
Fallingfeather
Man, it sucks that she can’t actually use the vehicles as intended, if just for safety reasons. I’d much rather be behind a windshield of (presumably) reinforced glass than standing off to the side somewhere when talking about flying shrapnel.
Spekkio
Not much reason to use anything but electric – the main benefit of fuel is sheer energy density, which gives you operational range. That doesn’t look like a high priority here in comparison to more pressing concerns, like not making exhaust, efficiency, or (maybe) being usable in vacuum.
JoB
Well, they may not have a need for “operational range” as in *distance* to drive, but going for an entire shift (while powering a circular saw or somesuch) is still something I wouldn’t want to try with our RL EVs of today …
Quillpaw
I don’t remember if we’ve seen it before, but the Ixion logo with the launch loop is just exquisite graphic design.
40
Oh my god you draw detailed vehicles so good
Phlosioneer
There’s a decent amount of 3D modeling for scenery. Not easy either, but it explains the hyper detailed stuff, like accurate tractor tread geometry & lighting. It’s very impressive.
Phlosioneer
This is what I meant by my bip comment last page – my bet is on Bip doing some shenanigans during this shift. I know he can’t literally be within her tablet, but it’s still a decent jumping-off point to hack into neighboring equipment, audiovisual systems, sensors, etc.
Bip isn’t stupid. He won’t do anything to make himself noticed. But I bet he wants to make talita annoyed so that he gets her attention. I also bet he needs to have some fun / blow off some steam… his previous crew did die suddenly and *violently*, and he nearly died too. And also, though he isn’t stupid, he’s thinking slower than usual, so he might be a bit reckless…
DasGanon
You mean something like this older animation?
https://jayeaton.site/Art/RttS/Animation/BipTakesRemoteControl
tickfleato
remember, bip uses they/them!
Phlosioneer
Heck, forgot!
Hi
Dot eye talita my beloved
Rob
She’s giving Tina
(And it’s perfect)
hal9000
was half hoping to see a very skrunkled talita squished into the cockpit of a front loader lmao
Jay Eaton
Unfortunately I think her spine would not bend enough.
dokki
LMAO like Mr incredible driving his tiny car
JoB
She stopped doing that after hearing her back-then human cow-orkers making “clown car” jokes when they thought she couldn’t hear them. 😛
Apollo235
On the backs of the vehicles, are those radiators or antennas?
JoB
They look like they’re supposed to *fold open*, which makes me think of either solar panels or anti-meteorite shields, both “just” for emergencies, of course …
JoB
… and IIUC the surface around the habitat is supposed not to get any noteworthy lighting, so solar panels should be out as well …
Lord Eric
I think they might be counterweight blocks, or maybe batteries. Or both; I can tell you from experience that lead-acid batteries make dandy counterweights.
JoB
Umh. Are we talking about the 2×5 chunky vehicle-colored blocks at the level of the “Ixion” logo (I agree that those likely are batteries double-serving as counterweights), or the darker “butterfly wings” above … ?
Jay Eaton
Those are radiator panels.
Apollo235
Rad, I love big ol radiators
AnaKaye
Running combustion engines would probably make the station’s systems have to work that much harder to keep the atmosphere breathable and healthy for everyone aboard. Electric vehicles make a LOT more sense.
AnaKaye
Ack, I hit post before finishing my thought: Even for the brief time the vehicles might operate indoors, on their way outside or whatever, it would foul the atmosphere with combustion byproducts. And any vehicle operating outside in vacuum or a non-oxygen atmosphere would be unable to even use a combustion engine, because that requires oxygen.
Havlock
I figured right off that combustion engines are right out for any vehicle operating in vacuum, but that it might be possible for a ethanol (or other fuel type) fuel cell to work. It would need bottled oxygen to react with, and a means to collect the byproducts, so it’d still be overall more complicated than using battery packs.
Claire
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evileeyore
Oh, niiice!
Greenjoe
Ah, so that’s how Talita uses those vehicles when the cockpit isn’t big enough for her.