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Re: Kaison « Result #5 Yesterday at 7:47pm »
Kai: Getting out of the chair? Hell no....Actually I think my stomach may have collapsed from sitting so much....and I might need medical attention....
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Re: Kaison « Result #6 Yesterday at 7:44pm »
Onmyo: WHEEW! *lets out air* Ahaha, finally getting out of the chair and getting ripped huh? Good for you! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be hiding now... ;>>
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Re: Kato Arts « Result #11 on Dec 22, 2009, 6:41pm »
Next of the Spiderman artworks. I honestly wasn't planning on drawing Venom at all. In fact I was trying to draw Valgas in his transformed state. But it just looked so Venomy, and a watcher on DA had requested it so....
Besides, I'd be very surprised if Venom didn't end up on that Spider-Man T-shirt list thing.
Joined: Nov 2009 Gender: Male Posts: 6 Location: Silent Hill, Virginia
Re: The Princess and the Frog « Result #18 on Dec 22, 2009, 11:23am »
I do like how his shadow can freely move around. @3@
And I just noticed how a certain villainous character that I draw always ends up looking like Dr. Facilier... Tall, lanky, and in somewhat of a gentleman's suit. Or you could say he looked like Jack the Ripper. Idk. XD
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Re: Kato Arts « Result #20 on Dec 21, 2009, 9:07pm »
Actually, I can't decide if it's a scorpion or a monkey. Another version I did had ears on the helmet, and the pointy thing had a crown attached to it.
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Re: Introductory thread! « Result #29 on Dec 21, 2009, 6:59pm »
JACCCCCCCCCCCCCCK!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!! YAY! I am VERY HAPPY to see you here. ^_____________^ You were the first person I ever forum RP'd with over on STH, and YOU ROCK! Please stay a while. XD
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Re: Border Breaker - Jack « Result #31 on Dec 21, 2009, 6:32pm »
As far as history goes, you need not write in story format what happened. You can put that over in the writing section of the creative subforum. XD;; We just need a gist of what happened in the history bit.
Border Breaker - Jack « Result #32 on Dec 21, 2009, 6:28pm »
Border-Breaker
Name/Nickname: Jacque Calico / “Jack”
Age: 27, but looks and dresses about 16
Gender: Both (technically, but we’ll call him ‘he’)
Height: 5'5''
Weight: 140 lbs
Alignment: Lawful Good
World of Origin: Earth
Power Ratings
Strength Level: 5 Having the need to bulk up physically to pass as true male, Jack is stronger than he looks. He has lifted weights from crates of wine and beer to hay bales and straight up dumbbells. His strength has been enhanced to follow his calling to protect the weak and needy.
Speed Level: 3 He has a slightly higher than average agility and is good at running, but there is nothing particularly special there.
Intelligence Level: 4 Both practically minded and analytically sound, Jack is intelligent but has the inconvenience of dyslexia. These balance each other out to give him a broadly good intelligence and specific skill in spatial awareness and creative, spur-of-the-moment plans.
Defense Level: 6 Jack has a high pain tolerance, a stubborn streak a mile wide and burning spirit to do what is right. This makes him BLOODY tough. It’s not all damage soak, it is largely sheer bloody-minded determination and mental resilience. Even if dealt a staggering blow that knocks him silly, he’ll try to get back up and have another go.
Ether Level: 6 As part of the package, Jack has channelled his desire to help and save people into the POTENT power to heal over other flashier powers. His power works on anything living in the organic sense and he has to use his own life-force to heal, so the more serious the wound, the harder it is. He needs time to recover afterwards, for his body to rebalance his own life-force, but he can heal damage, diffuse poisons and other toxins and cure disease. He can heal someone on the brink of death, unless their spirit has already passed on. He can also promote health in things uninjured.
Spirit Level: 4 Jack is sensitive to the moods of others, but seems to focus in on things like pain, anguish and discomfort most. He can generally tell when someone is upset, whatever species they are, and will try to comfort any way he can.
Skills and Abilities: Is l33t skills with a bo staff (katanas suck) Jack is like his namesake, of all trades. He is a writer, an artist, a historian, a scientist and has such a broad knowledge and skill base that he’s kind of the Swiss Army knife of dudes. He’s versed in several martial arts but only really studies ninjitsu and prefers bo staff over sword, and has a lot of experience street fighting. He is also proficient at first aid, cutting a mango correctly, fixing machines when they go wrong and bush craft.
Weaknesses: Jack is easy to con, deceive and trick. He is so earnest in his desire to help others that he rarely stops to verify a situation before taking everything at face value.
DAIMU:
Spark – Spark is literally a dancing ball of light that flicks about his shoulder, and happily does not shout ‘LISTEN!’ all the time.
Relationships: NONE! (yet)
Personality: Jack often appears grumpy or surly. He has high ideals and expects the world to share them and is constantly disappointed when they don’t. He hates injustice and bullying in every form and can’t help but throw himself into situations before he thinks things through. He does not even hesitate to do things like wade into a river to rescue an animal, give his coat to someone in a snow storm and get into the middle of a fight to break the opponents apart. He struggles to articulate the caring side of him and is awkward when the action is over. He has a very off beat humour.
Race: Human. He speaks English and conversational Sign Language.
History: Shit. It was all so fucking shit. He gripped the steering wheel of his car so tightly the muscles up to his shoulders locked and he bit his lower lip. Just what the hell was wrong with the world? Why did protecting people in danger have to come under the accountant’s hammer? Why did the newspapers have to nitpick over every little mistake and waste everyone’s time and effort getting wound up about inconsequential things so the real injustices get completely ignored! It was so frustrating he could scream. Then he did scream. But only because there was a man suddenly sitting in his passenger seat. The car swerved and bumped off the kerb with a scrape that left a hubcap somewhere in the bushes. “What the HELL! GET OUT OF MY CAR!” yelled Jack, trying to lean away from this smiling man as much as he could. “I’ve come with an interesting proposition!” “GET OUT OF MY CAR!!” “I’m glad you asked that question. You see, you have some really interesting stuff going on and I’d really like you to consider becoming a breaker.” There was a screech and the man hit the dashboard as Jack applied the brakes hard. “Owww ... that wasn’t really what I meant.” Jack smacked the man repeatedly around the head. “Get out of my car!” “You have a – ow! – terrific sense of justice! Please stop hitting me! I really need someone with your integrity – ow! – you really care about people, all of them!” When Jack failed to kick the man out of his car (as the passenger door was mysteriously locked), he leapt out the driver’s side and ran around to unlock it himself. He hauled the man out by the arm. “What the hell is your problem, you crazy bastard!” he yelled at the man as he got back in, LOCKED all his doors and sped off. He got a full twenty yards before screeching to a halt again and winding down the window. “Do you have bus fare?” The man smiled and shrugged. “No, but I do have a wonderful proposition for you!” Jack swore and rested his head on his steering wheel. He knew he was going to regret this. This never turned out good. He reversed a ways and unlocked the passenger side. “Get in. It’s cold.” “I want you to be a Breaker.” “That’s great, just get in before I change my mind and abandon you here in the freezing cold to die of exposure!” The man got into the car and put his seatbelt on, marvelling at it so much that Jack had to shove it back into the socket and give him a warning look. They drove on, Jack in silence and the man in a perpetual state of babble. “And all you have to do is kill yourself.” Jack blinked, realising he’d zoned out everything else the man had said. “Wait, what now? Are you an escapee or something??” The man gripped his arm. “I’m absolutely serious, Jack. Everything fictional to you is real somewhere. You can make a real difference! You’re a knight born in the wrong time! I need you. WE need you, there’s others who’ll need your brand of strength.” Jack shook his hand off. “’Strength’?! I had an emotional break-down because I can’t handle pressure!” he snapped. “Exactly! I can offer you the ability to actually do something. Get active in saving the worlds!” Jack thought he was a sandwich short of a picnic and said so. “Oh come now, Jack. People like you always kill themselves sooner or later. What about that time you jumped out a window to get someone out from a fight? Or all those times you’ve put a fire out? You’re going to get yourself killed one day, you might as well go for it and then come with me to save as many people as you can.” “I know what this is, I forgot to take my pills. Or I took too many and now I’m hallucinating you.” “It’s a simple proposition Jack. Do you want the chance to REALLY save people, or do you want to frustrate yourself to a point you do something rashly stupid?” Jack was silent. Leave everything he knew and loved to recklessly pursue ‘glory’ and a kind of self-serving egotism? He began to shake his head. “I don’t do it for the thanks. I do it because it’s ... because somebody should and nobody does. Just ... fucking stop by the homeless guy. He’s probably really decent but totally messed up. He probably just wants to get food or a drink so he can feel his goddamn mind again,” his eyes started to burn with furious emotion, “it’s not going to kill you to pull over and ask someone stopped flashing their fourways if everyone’s alright. Just ... just stop. Just reach out. Is it so fucking hard?!” He slammed his hand repeatedly on the wheel. The man watched him. “The world borders are crumbling. Billions of lives need someone to reach out. Are you brave enough to take that chance?” Jack looked at him. “... and you want me to kill myself to do this?” “You won’t die, I’ll swap you out. You’ll come with me.” Jack didn’t answer verbally, but put his foot down on the gas. “I’m sorry little car. You’ve done right by me and I love you.” *BANG!*
Apperance: Stocky Mediterranean build with very fair Scandanavian complexion and grey green eyes. He has short black hair that sticks out at all angles. He usually wears a white long sleeved top under a loose t-shirt and floppy jeans with trainers and a scarf around his neck.
Joined: Nov 2009 Gender: Male Posts: 6 Location: Silent Hill, Virginia
Roan Ralleigh (Boarder Breaker) « Result #33 on Dec 21, 2009, 2:53pm »
Name/Nickname: "Trickster" Roan Ralleigh
Age: 15, and appears 15.
Gender: Male
Height: 5' 4"
Weight: 114 lbs.
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
World of Origin: ... Earth, obviously. o3o
Power Ratings: Strength Level: WIMPY WIMPY WIMPY. Can't even lift a portable TV without being winded. Speed Level: Unlike his poor strength, Roan is extremely agile. He can easily speed past anyone chasing him, and can dodge most attacks. He is clumsy, though. Intelligence Level: Very smart. Even though he can't do any psychic powers, he can plot tactics quickly to outsmart most opponents. Defense Level: Due to being so scrawny, he can't take many hits, let alone block. I'd say two punches from Little Mac would take him down. An upside is that he can evade well, with his agility and such. Ether Level: He relies on his powers alot, so he has plenty of magic to spare. Prepare yourself for a rain of voodoo juju and necromantic nonsense. Spirit Level: Oddly (and hypocriticly), Roan is quite friendly, and enjoys helping others, even evil doers. Although he could help others, he can't help himself due to a mental issue where he switches from being dependent on others, to being antisocial.
Skills and Abilities: Ralleigh Voodoo- Roan's love of sorcerery, twisted into his thoughts. He may not be a master at voodoo, but he sure does do that voodoo that you do do well. -brick'd- Bayou Blues- A plague of voodoo bugs. They can do numerous things, from being made of poison or acid, to exploding on impact. Cajun Cards- Tarot cards... that explode! Necromantic Horde- Roan summons a small batallion of undead creatures, including zombies, skeletons, ghouls, and more. Strange Succubus- Not necessarily a power, but Roan's got a very creepy, mysterious, charming vibe to him. Somehow, certain people find this attractive and will bother Roan. Let's just hope Breaker Kato doesn't end up Auto Sexing him... Who knows what horrid effect might happen? @____@
In addition to these odd powers, Roan has a talent in all forms of tricks. He's great with gambling, pulling off pranks, and somehow managing getting out of a deep hole of trouble. He's also good at being sneaky and stuff, able to pickpocket items of interest, and hiding from enemies in the dark. He's an expert at disguises, and can blend in almost anywhere. He's also quite good with a balisong knife and a fencing rapier.
Weaknesses: Roan is often over-emotional, and that can hinder trying to get his attention or his friendship. Physical attacks can obviously harm him greatly, due to being a lanky, scarecrow figure. He is near sighted, and CAN'T fight without his glasses. The furthest he could see without anything getting blurred would be only a foot in front of him. He has a few fears, some being rational, and the others irrational. He fears thunder, heights, girly "fru fru" things, people dressed like a gangster, and all sorts of bugs (oddly enough, he isn't afraid of his voodoo bugs). Any of these mortify Roan, and will send him into a panic attack. He is extremely greedy, and can/will do anything for a bit of money. ANYTHING. Well, almost anything.
DAIMU: A strange, raccoon-looking fluff ball. Complete with ears and a tail!
Relationships: Roan's an emo bean, because he's got no one. At the moment. ;-;
Personality: Roan is a strange one. He's often into grim topics, talking about the creepiest things. He enjoys being more artistic, and absolutely LOATHES sports and certain physical activities. He is also quite bipolar, randomly switching from a rather hyper and friendly voice, to a somber and soft one. And he repeatedly changes moods, so it's best to get used to it. He has a maddening, almost zealous, obsession for a perfect romance. He can get jealous or upset when someone keeps proudly displaying his/her boyfriend/girlfriend as if he/she were a trophy. He doesn't act childish, and behaves way older than his age. He's mostly serious, and doesn't laugh or smile that much. Roan is apparently the MASTER of keeping a good indifferent/poker face. As for his Daimu, Roan treats him just like a pet... raccoon. He is extremely kind for it, and often spoils it with treats each and everytime it does something good. He doesn't even punish it if it messes up.
Appearance: Roan is a fan of the Silent Hill and Sly Cooper universe... So he somehow managed to put both into his Breaker uniform. He wears a dark, thief-like bodysuit underneath his tattered black coat and flares. His boots are crystalline shaped and dirty, adding to the Silent Hill part of his outfit. He wears bloodied surgical gloves, and a top hat with a rusty metal band surrounding the brim. He wanders around with a sword cane as well.
In his civvies, he pretty much wears a cropped, tight shirt, a black jacket, fingerless gloves, his skinny flares, and his boots. And of course, his glasses. He'll wear anything Gothic.
History: An upset child who was on the brink of suicide, Roan slowly became unstable on the inside. He despised human life, due to how cruel the real world is. Harajah had summoned him because Roan could be a perfect find, due to the clone that is created and meant to die for the new Breaker in the real world. So, he showed Roan a new light, and the duty of being a Breaker. Roan gladly accepted, leaving his old life behind. Currently, Roan is a newbie at his job and wandering around, fixing up universes and such.
Anything Else: The reference to the auto sexing WAS intentional. And I hate myself for thinking, "What if Kato used that power with Roan's charming little self?"
Re: Introductory thread! « Result #40 on Dec 21, 2009, 12:41pm »
KT encouraged me to join, so I guess that constitutes invitation.
Some of you guys may remember me as Toast Kitten or Wildae. Yeap, it's me, I'm alive again. Still drawing, still writing, now I have the chariot of dreams aka. my badass Rover Metro. Oh yes. It's badass.
I could see that if there was enough of a root in other colonies/planets/satellites, that Earth could eventually just be nothing more than a glorified plot of farm land if enough of the population left. XD;
There's a certain amount of pride, even when there are so many colonies in space, of calling yourself an "Earth Elite". Earth is our homeworld, and a lot of people would be incredibly stubborn about leaving it, especially those in Asia and Europe. Right now, the main political centers are on Earth (unless there are stronger reasons for them to be in space). An interesting situation might be similar to when the British colonized the Americas. A sort of 'taxation without representation' situation with the spacial colonies, though this would be more of a case-by-case basis rather than a blatant ignorance of the home territories.
However, you're correct in the Earth slowly becoming nothing more than an agricultural center, with some of the best minds concentrating on keeping the soil and resources on Earth to last as long as humanly possible.
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Re: Curon's Random RP Scratch Thread « Result #43 on Dec 20, 2009, 5:19am »
I could see that if there was enough of a root in other colonies/planets/satellites, that Earth could eventually just be nothing more than a glorified plot of farm land if enough of the population left. XD;
Eventually, though, unless a country claims an entire planet, it's likely that each one would be broken up into territories owned by various countries. The 'premium' space, so to speak, will probably be fought over in the long haul.
The UN, while having some involvement with the colonies, would likely keep its focus on internal matters, doing what it can to keep the peace between nations (like that ever really stopped anyone), forcing nations to sign documents of non-violence while in the stars.
As such, there are multiple focus points for this particular RP: Military, Industrial, Civilian, Corporate, and Political.
Military: There's always going to be some contention. Between territorial disputes in the stars as well as on the planets (both the US and Russia would have a vested interest in the limited water supply on Mars). There will also be disputes on Earth proper, as it is still one of the main areas for agriculture, however combat is highly discouraged and regulated (?) by the UN in order to keep the food supply for a growing humanity in check.
Industrial: There's always going to be espionage going on. One country will always want the best technology for their efforts, the best materials, and the best people. This sort of falls in with Corporate, but at the same time, each country will always be trying to 'one-up' other projects, especially the US and Russia (as their rivalry is the stuff of legends, sometimes).
Civilian: Being a mere civilian worker in a sci-fi setting would likely be a confusing one. Unless you've read books like Isaac Asimov's "I, Robot", you rarely see a perspective of random 'joe' in a sci-fi setting. Aside from a biological standpoint of going from Earth to an orbital colony (which a lot of people would experience a kind of 'agriculture shock'), people have to adapt to an even more hostile environment, one that mankind was NEVER designed for.
Corporate: There's money to be made in the business of space colonies. from producing the vital metal and materials for the colonies exterior to the vital components such as recycling oxygen and solar power arrays and pollution control, civilian contracts are HEAVILY on the rise. A lot of the inter-solar-system economy depends almost exclusively on the trade between planets and colonies as well as the constantly expanding population and territories, and higher-ups in the corporate scene know this in detail. Running one's own corporation can be just as cut-throat as competing with other corporations, however.
Political: Needless to say, if the political scene is complex, confusing, and downright dangerous in the current time, think of it when a 3rd dimension is added. Intergalactic politics is likely something truly awesome to behold, many colonies having as many as a hundred representatives that attend many many meetings and forums in order to shape political agendas and policy, each step along the political ladder being even more dangerous and hostile.
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Re: Curon's Random RP Scratch Thread « Result #45 on Dec 20, 2009, 3:49am »
Hmmm.... This idea is rather interesting.
Eventually, though, unless a country claims an entire planet, it's likely that each one would be broken up into territories owned by various countries. The 'premium' space, so to speak, will probably be fought over in the long haul.
Re: Curon's Random RP Scratch Thread « Result #46 on Dec 19, 2009, 2:57pm »
The first steps into space were taken by German scientists during World War II while testing the V2 rocket which became the first human-made object in space. After the war, the Allies used German scientists and their captured rockets in programs for both military and civilian research.
The first scientific exploration from space was the cosmic radiation experiment launched by the U.S. on a V2 rocket on May 10, 1946.
The first images of Earth taken from space followed the same year while the first animal experiment saw fruit flies lifted into space in 1947, both also on modified V2s launched by Americans. These suborbital experiments only allowed a very short time in space which limited their usefulness.
The first successful orbital launch was of the Soviet unmanned Sputnik ("Satellite I") mission on October 4, 1957. The satellite weighed about 83 kg (184 pounds), and is believed to have orbited Earth at a height of about 250 km (150 miles). It had two radio transmitters (20 and 40 MHz), which emitted "beeps" that could be heard by radios around the globe. Analysis of the radio signals was used to gather information about the electron density of the ionosphere, while temperature and pressure data was encoded in the duration of radio beeps. The results indicated that the satellite was not punctured by a meteoroid. Sputnik 1 was launched by an R-7 rocket. It burned up upon re-entry on January 3, 1958.
This success led to an escalation of the American space program, which unsuccessfully attempted to launch Vanguard 1 into orbit two months later. On January 31, 1958, the U.S. successfully orbited Explorer 1 on a Juno rocket. In the meantime, the Soviet dog Laika became the first animal in orbit on November 3, 1957.
The first successful human spaceflight was Vostok 1 ("East 1"), carrying 27 year old Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin on April 12, 1961. The spacecraft completed one orbit around the globe, lasting about 1 hour and 48 minutes. Gagarin's flight resonated around the world; it was a demonstration of the advanced Soviet space program and it opened an entirely new era in space exploration: human spaceflight.
The U.S. first launched a person into space within a month of Vostok 1 with Alan Shepard's suborbital flight in Mercury-Redstone 3. Orbital flight was achieved by the United States when John Glenn's Mercury-Atlas 6 orbited the Earth on February 20, 1962.
Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman in space, orbited the Earth 48 times aboard Vostok 6 on June 16, 1963.
China first launched a person into space 42 years after the launch of Vostok 1, on October 15, 2003, with the flight of Yang Liwei aboard the Shenzhou 5 (Spaceboat 5) spacecraft.
The first artificial object to reach another celestial body was Luna 2 in 1959.[6] The first automatic landing on another celestial body was performed by Luna 9[7] in 1966. Luna 10 became the first artificial satellite of another celestial body[8].
The first manned landing on another celestial body was performed by Apollo 11 in its lunar landing on July 20, 1969.
The first successful interplanetary flyby was the 1962 Mariner 2 flyby of Venus (closest approach 34,773 kilometers). Flybys for the other planets were first achieved in 1965 for Mars by Mariner 4, 1973 for Jupiter by Pioneer 10, 1974 for Mercury by Mariner 10, 1979 for Saturn by Pioneer 11, 1986 for Uranus by Voyager 2, and 1989 for Neptune by Voyager 2.
The first interplanetary surface mission to return at least limited surface data from another planet was the 1970 landing of Venera 7 on Venus which returned data to earth for 23 minutes. In 1971 the Mars 3 mission achieved the first soft landing on Mars returning data for almost 20 seconds. Later much longer duration surface missions were achieved, including over 6 years of Mars surface operation by Viking 1 from 1975 to 1982 and over 2 hours of transmission from the surface of Venus by Venera 13 in 1982 (the longest ever Soviet planetary surface mission).
Many private projects have been announced (see list of private spaceflight companies). Among the most notable is Bigelow Aerospace, which has successfully launched and tested two space station modules, Genesis I and Genesis II, and plans to build the first orbital space hotel. The first component of the space hotel, named Sundancer, is scheduled for launch in 2011. The expected cost for a one-week stay on the station is approximately $7.9 million. All of Bigelow's current space habitat designs are based on NASA's Transhab design. The Google Lunar X-Prize also promotes private space exploration by offering a prize of $20 million for the first privately funded company to land a robotic rover on the moon, as well as a $10 million second prize. Companies such as Odyssey Moon and Astrobotic Technology are currently developing robotic landers and rovers for the competition. SpaceX has also performed two successful flights of their Falcon 1 launch vehicle; the first successful fully liquid-propelled orbital launch vehicle developed with private funding and have scheduled their Falcon 9 vehicle for its first launch in late 2009.[11][12][13] Richard Branson's Virgin Group and Scaled Composites have announced taking human space tourists into space with SpaceShipTwo, a reusable, sub-orbital spaceplane, to be unveiled in December, 2009, and begin public flights in 2010 (see Virgin Galactic).[14] SpaceShipTwo will be able to transport eight humans (two pilots and six passengers) into space at a time. A ticket on SpaceShipTwo currently costs $200,000, but the price is expected to drop to $20,000 over time.
Mercury remains the least explored of the inner planets. As of January 2008, the Mariner 10 and MESSENGER missions have been the only missions that have made close observations of Mercury. MESSENGER made a fly-by of Mercury on 14 January 2008, to further investigate the observations made by Mariner 10 in 1975 (Munsell, 2006b). A third mission to Mercury, scheduled to arrive in 2020, BepiColombo is to include two probes. BepiColombo is a joint mission between Japan and the European Space Agency. MESSENGER and BepiColombo are intended to gather complementary data to help scientists understand many of the mysteries discovered by Mariner 10's flybys.
Flights to other planets within the Solar System are accomplished at a cost in energy, which is described by the net change in velocity of the spacecraft, or delta-v. Due to the relatively high delta-v to reach Mercury and its proximity to the Sun, it is difficult to explore and orbits around it are rather unstable.
Venus was the first target of interplanetary flyby and lander missions and, despite one of the most hostile surface environments in the solar system, has had more landers sent to it (nearly all from the Soviet Union) than any other planet in the solar system. The first successful Venus flyby was the American Mariner 2 spacecraft, which flew past Venus in 1962. Mariner 2 has been followed by several other flybys by multiple space agencies often as part of missions using a Venus flyby to provide a gravitational assist en route to other celestial bodies. In 1967 Venera 4 became the first probe to enter and directly examine the atmosphere of Venus. In 1970 Venera 7 became the first successful lander to reach the surface of Venus and by 1985 it had been followed by eight additional successful Soviet Venus landers which provided images and other direct surface data. Starting in 1975 with the Soviet orbiter Venera 9 some ten successful orbiter missions have been sent to Venus, including later missions which were able to map the surface of Venus using radar to pierce the obscuring atmosphere.
Earth's Moon was the first celestial object (apart from the Earth itself) to be the object of space exploration. It holds the distinctions of being the first remote celestial object to be flown by, orbited, and landed upon by spacecraft, and the only remote celestial object ever to be visited by humans.
In 1959 the Soviets obtained the first images of the far side of the Moon, never previously visible to humans. The U.S. exploration of the Moon began with the Ranger 4 impactor in 1962. Starting in 1966 the Soviets successfully deployed a number of landers to the Moon which were able to obtain data directly from the Moon's surface; just four months later, Surveyor 1 marked the debut of a successful series of U.S. landers. The Soviet unmanned missions culminated in the Lunokhod program in the early '70s which included the first unmanned rovers and also successfully returned lunar soil samples to the Earth for study. This marked the first (and to date the only) automated return of extraterrestrial soil samples to the Earth. Unmanned exploration of the Moon continues with various nations periodically deploying lunar orbiters, and in 2008 the Indian Moon Impact Probe.
Manned exploration of the Moon began in 1968 with the Apollo 8 mission that successfully orbited the Moon, the first time any extraterrestrial object was orbited by humans. In 1969 the Apollo 11 mission marked the first time humans set foot upon another world. Manned exploration of the Moon did not continue for long, however. The Apollo 17 mission in 1972 marked the last time humans would visit the Moon in any form and no human exploration mission is planned to reach the Moon sooner than the 2010s.
The exploration of Mars has been an important part of the space exploration programs of the Soviet Union (later Russia), the United States, Europe, and Japan. Dozens of robotic spacecraft, including orbiters, landers, and rovers, have been launched toward Mars since the 1960s. These missions were aimed at gathering data about current conditions and answering questions about the history of Mars. The questions raised by the scientific community are expected to not only give a better appreciation of the red planet but also yield further insight into the past, and possible future, of Earth.
The exploration of Mars has come at a considerable financial cost with roughly two-thirds of all spacecraft destined for Mars failing before completing their missions, with some failing before they even began. Such a high failure rate can be attributed to the complexity and large number of variables involved in an interplanetary journey, and has led researchers to jokingly speak of The Great Galactic Ghoul[21] which subsists on a diet of Mars probes. This phenomenon is also informally known as the Mars Curse.[22]
The Russian space mission Phobos-Grunt, Scheduled to launch in 2011[23], will begin exploration of Phobos and Martian circumterrestrial orbit, and study whether the moons of Mars, or at least Phobos, could be a "trans-shipment point" for spaceships travelling to Mars.[24]
The exploration of Jupiter has consisted solely of a number of automated NASA spacecraft visiting the planet since 1973. A large majority of the missions have been "flybys", in which detailed observations are taken without the probe landing or entering orbit; the Galileo spacecraft is the only one to have orbited the planet. As Jupiter is believed to have only a relatively small rocky core and no real solid surface, a landing mission is nearly impossible.
Reaching Jupiter from Earth requires a delta-v of 9.2 km/s,[25] which is comparable to the 9.7 km/s delta-v needed to reach low Earth orbit.[26] Fortunately, gravity assists through planetary flybys can be used to reduce the energy required at launch to reach Jupiter, albeit at the cost of a significantly longer flight duration.[25]
Jupiter has over 60 known moons, many of which have relatively little known about them.
Saturn has been explored only through unmanned spacecraft launched by NASA, including one mission (Cassini–Huygens) planned and executed in cooperation with other space agencies. These missions consist of flybys in 1979 by Pioneer 11, in 1980 by Voyager 1, in 1982 by Voyager 2 and an orbital mission by the Cassini spacecraft which entered orbit in 2004 and is expected to continue its mission well into 2010.
Saturn has at least 60 satellites, although the exact number is debatable since Saturn's rings are made up of vast numbers of independently orbiting objects of varying sizes. The largest of the moons is Titan. Titan holds the distinction of being the only moon in the solar system with an atmosphere denser and thicker than that of the Earth. As a result of the deployment from the Cassini spacecraft of the Huygens probe and its successful landing on Titan, Titan also holds the distinction of being the only moon (apart from Earth's own Moon) to be successfully explored with a lander.
The exploration of Uranus has been entirely through the Voyager 2 spacecraft, with no other visits currently planned. Given its axial tilt of 97.77°, with its polar regions exposed to sunlight or darkness for long periods, scientists were not sure what to expect at Uranus. The closest approach to Uranus occurred on January 24, 1986. Voyager 2 studied the planet's unique atmosphere and magnetosphere. Voyager 2 also examined its ring system and the moons of Uranus including all five of the previously known moons, while discovering an additional ten previously unknown moons.
Images of Uranus proved to have a very uniform appearance, with no evidence of the dramatic storms or atmospheric banding evident on Jupiter and Saturn. Great effort was required to even identify a few clouds in the images of the planet. The magnetosphere of Uranus, however, proved to be completely unique and proved to be profoundly affected by the planet's unusual axial tilt. In contrast to the bland appearance of Uranus itself, striking images were obtained of the moons of Uranus, including evidence that Miranda had been unusually geologically active.
The exploration of Neptune began with the August 25, 1989 Voyager 2 flyby, the sole visit to the system as of 2009. The possibility of a Neptune Orbiter has been discussed, but no other missions have been given serious thought.
Although the extremely uniform appearance of Uranus during Voyager 2's visit in 1986 had led to expectations that Neptune would also have few visible atmospheric phenomena, Voyager 2 found that Neptune had obvious banding, visible clouds, auroras, and even a conspicuous anticyclone storm system rivaled in size only by Jupiter's Great Spot. Neptune also proved to have the fastest winds of any planet in the solar system, measured as high as 2,100 km/h.[27] Voyager 2 also examined Neptune's ring and moon system. It discovered four complete rings and additional partial ring "arcs" around Neptune. In addition to examining Neptune's three previously known moons, Voyager 2 also discovered five previously unknown moons, one of which, Proteus, proved to be the second largest moon in the system. Data from Voyager further reinforced the view that Neptune's largest moon, Triton, is a captured Kuiper belt object.
The dwarf planet Pluto (considered a planet until the IAU redefinition of "planet" in October 2006[29]) presents significant challenges for spacecraft because of its great distance from Earth (requiring high velocity for reasonable trip times) and small mass (making capture into orbit very difficult at present). Voyager 1 could have visited Pluto, but controllers opted instead for a close flyby of Saturn's moon Titan, resulting in a trajectory incompatible with a Pluto flyby. Voyager 2 never had a plausible trajectory for reaching Pluto.[30]
Pluto continues to be of great interest, despite its reclassification as the lead and nearest member of a new and growing class of distant icy bodies of intermediate size, in mass between the remaining eight planets and the small rocky objects historically termed asteroids (and also the first member of the important subclass, defined by orbit and known as "Plutinos"). After an intense political battle, a mission to Pluto dubbed New Horizons was granted funding from the US government in 2003.[31] New Horizons was launched successfully on January 19, 2006. In early 2007 the craft made use of a gravity assist from Jupiter. Its closest approach to Pluto will be on July 14, 2015; scientific observations of Pluto will begin five months prior to closest approach and will continue for at least a month after the encounter.
Militarisation of space took place since the 1960s, and is now evolving into weaponisation of space with actual placement of weapons by space-faring nations for decisive military advantage.
While military activities have certainly taken place in space and space is an operating location for many military spacecraft (such as imaging & communications satellites) or a temporary transit medium for weapons (such as ballistic missiles), permanent placement of operational weapons in space has never been conducted.
Space colonization, also called space settlement and space humanization, would be the permanent autonomous (self-sufficient) human habitation of locations outside Earth, especially of natural satellites or planets such as the Moon or Mars, using significant amounts of in-situ resource utilization.
To date, the longest human occupation of space was the space station Mir, which was continuously inhabited for almost ten years, including Valeri Polyakov's record single spaceflight of almost 438 days. Long-term stays in space reveal issues with bone and muscle loss in low gravity, immune system suppression, and radiation exposure.
Many past and current concepts for the continued exploration and colonization of space focus on a return to the Moon as a "stepping stone" to the other planets, especially Mars. At the end of 2006 NASA announced they were planning to build a permanent Moon base with continual presence by 2024.[37]
SO WHATS THE POINT
The point is a generalistic sci-fi RP idea. Say a lot of the goals, set by each individual nation (along with NATO, UN, EU, etc) come to fruition. Obviously, intergalactic space travel is well out of humanity's reach for at least another millenium. At least in my opinion.
In order to facilitate the growth of a rapidly expanding population, it stands to reason that either the entirety of the Earth's surface is taken up wholesale for GIANT skyscrapper, mass-produced 'apartment' type homes (which would cripple the Earth's ability to provide food for said people) or start establishing colonies in space.
Establishing colonies (either in orbit or on another heavenly body) is tricky, complex, and expensive. It is increasingly difficult to justify the cost of such machinations, as well as the pure manpower to construct them. In order to alleviate the costs, each government would need a dedicated 'construction' site in Earth's orbit to construct new orbital colonies which (stationed on lagrange points) would eliminate the cost of pushing such massive structures from the ground/atmosphere.
Lagrange points are points between the Earth and either Mars, Luna, or Venus where the gravitational pull between them is the same: If you put an object in that position, it neither drifts towards one planet or the other. However, maintaining the orbits of these objects becomes increasingly difficult due to the elipse around the sun, and so colonies based on Lagrange points would only be practical between the Earth and Moon.
Banish any illusions of a unified Earth. Such notions are purely naiveties by some authors. Even three hundred years in the future, mankind would still be divided by their loyalties to country and state.
United States of America - Unless USA goes through a massive social revolution, two outcomes are likely: Either the USA resumes being the way it is (albeit with some aesthetic changes), or a Confederation of States, much like right after the Revolutionary War and before the US Civil War. The US' efforts would be more geared towards Luna (Moon), Venus, and orbital colonies. While the US holds no grudges against any country in general, the US has learned often enough to always have the best weapon and/or the best tactical positioning. As such, the military base on Luna would probably become one of the best strategic advantage in terms of space combat.
Russia - Russia has always been a bit far-sighted. Their sights have always been on Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. As such, besides orbital colonies around those planets and some around Earth, there are two outcomes: Russia either has relocated its peoples to orbital colonies around those planets (or one of the moons orbiting those planets), or is in a precarious position as far as spatial transportation.
China - The Chinese would likely be the slowest to expand from Earth, but at the same time, they do things right the FIRST time: Their orbital colonies are bigger and better than most, going for quality over quantity, only those deemed 'worthy' occupying such colonies. The majority of the population, however, is still controlled by the government on Earth, the weak, uneducated, and unlucky forcing to work in order to support themselves and the 'elite'.
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