I'm so stupid, I signed up and got the Zot.

[NicknamedBob]

Greetings, Doctor Michael!

Welcome aboard. 'Face mentioned that we have plenty of exercise equipment here, but I only come to exercise my imagination.

I've been designated the "Imperial Weatherman," perhaps because my contrariness does not permit me to just talk about the weather, and not do anything about it.

So I have the responsibility for the weather systems of Earth and Mars. Not the existing weather systems, but the ones we propose to build in order to "do something" about the weather.

F'rinstance, there's a claim that the temperature on old planet Earth is creeping up a might. I say, let's assume that it is: what could we do about it?

Astronomically speaking, there isn't much we could do, but there are other avenues. If the solar insolation is getting a bit extreme, we could simply set up some more means of reflecting the sunlight away again. Large farms of Stirling cycle engines producing electrical energy from excessive sunlight would alleviate our energy shortage, and when not producing energy, could effectively reflect the heat away.

I am also investigating the possibility of placing a shade-producing solar-cell satellite in a forced orbit which would rebalance the LaGrange Point One closer to Earth, and reduce the size needed to be an effective parasol for the planet.

But another thing to consider is the danger that a rising ocean would consume our coastal cities -- what could be done about that? Ah, that is where I have an audacious plan.

We would send the excess water, in the form of ice, on an interplanetary journey to our neighbor, Mars. This would be done by building a large electric catapult in the mountainous areas of Antarctica, and launching larger than boxcar loads of ice into suborbit and interplanetary orbits.

The suborbital loads would re-enter, melt, and irrigate desert areas on Earth. The interplanetary orbits could carry astronauts and colonists bound for Mars!

There's a great deal more detail about these plans, but they are all there in the previous posts to the Undead Thread, and can be left as a study exercise for the new arrival.

[Monkey Face]

Thanks Bob! You always have such an exciting way of putting things. I would be lost without your magnetic influence! ;o]

(Did you and King Prout come to terms on the dimensions of the castle? Or should I ask?) :o|

[Tax-chick]

Irrigate with salt water?

[NicknamedBob]

As you are well aware, King Prout has had a bit of computer problems plaguing him. But the work he was doing was to illuminate for us the scale and beauty of the collosal structure we are building together.

In effect, we are putting together an entire ecosystem and colonization module. If we chose, we could remain for years in it, exploring the solar system, and perhaps seeding tempting locations with small colonial outposts.

In addition, vital research in Astronomy, Areology, and in the composition of asteroids, placement of research devices, collection of materials for study and analysis, and many other tasks have been assigned to us.


Fortunately, whether we have these renderings to view or not, we are proceeding with the building and integration of our systems. Once we leave Earth, and put the various enclosures together in a mutually supporting structure, we will have everything we need to go exploring. We just didn't want to have to wait for that to have some pictures to show everyone!

[Not A Snowbird]

Hi, 'Face!

I'll be offline for a couple of days... meeting my husband in Montana for a little rendevous...

Bye!

[NicknamedBob]

"Irrigate with salt water?"

"...excess water, in the form of ice..."

Even if you started with brine, the process of freezing it would eliminate the salt. But we would be starting with millenia-old glacial ice, which is of course of rare purity.

Large chunks of ice from the heart of Antarctica would fragment over desert regions, melting and falling as rain, on demand and as needed. Eventually, this would add to the rise of the oceans. That's why a portion of it needs to be sent off-planet. Mars will certainly benefit from it.

[Tax-chick]

Oh, I see. I read the first post too fast. You're removing water straight from the icecaps. Very clever.

[Monkey Face]

I realize that, I think, but as usual, you have put it all together for me so my little brain can accept it. ;o]

Thanks, Bah...

(Some days, you really DO the "impossible" when it comes to helping me understand...)

[Monkey Face]

Have fun! (Or need I say that...?) ;o]

Be safe!

[Tax-chick]

Wow! Have a good time!

[NicknamedBob]

These are, of course, only the preliminary stages.

Eventually, the Antarctic continent, as well as all the deserts of Earth, would be made habitable.

Then we would concentrate on making Mars a shirtsleeve environment also. The first step, other than adding an ocean, would be to warm up the place with two large mirrors, similar to the one that would float over Antarctica.

After also supplementing the atmosphere of Mars with Carbon Dioxide, we would devise plants which could convert the CO² into Oxygen. Take a look.

Once these two most promising planets were fully terraformed, we would look into modifying other tidbits around the Solar System.

[Monkey Face]

OOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

Nice goin' Mr Weatherman! :o]

[Tax-chick]

we would devise plants which could convert the CO2 into Oxygen

Don't all green plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen?

And won't the ocean have interesting tides, what with the two moons?

[NicknamedBob]

"Don't all green plants convert carbon dioxide into oxygen?"

Of course! But can they survive on Mars?

"...won't the ocean have interesting tides..."

Mars' moons have inadequate mass to affect tides on a future ocean, but the winds could prove interesting. A planet that can generate globe-girdling sandstorms could certainly froth up a shallow ocean.

Not to imply that it wouldn't have depth! The center of the picture above is of Valle Marinaris, a deeper canyon system than the Grand Canyon on Earth!

[Tax-chick]

Cool. Maybe we could test the plants in Texas before we take them to Mars.

[NicknamedBob]

"Maybe we could test the plants in Texas before we take them to Mars."

Or maybe we could condition them to some extremes of weather in this place...

...once we scrape up and get rid of most of that pesky ice, of course! We'll leave a shadowed corner up on that peninsula for the penguins, and certainly the highlands will still get their snow. (Don't forget to pack your skis, and your sunscreen!)

A whole continent! Over five million square miles! How could we have overlooked it?

[Tax-chick]

I don't ski ... I'll just sit and watch the penguins.

[NicknamedBob]

I was doing a Google search, trying to find a decent picture of the kind of mirror I want to float over Antarctica. Couldn't find it.

Boy! The world sure is deficient in imagination, isn't it?

Anyway, the mirror would reflect sunlight down on the South Pole, warming it like the other continents, and opening it up to geological exploration, mining, and agriculture.

One disadvantage, it would never grow fully dark, and for half of every year, there would appear to be two suns in the sky! One would sometimes peek over the horizon, but the other would be almost overhead.

[tuliptree76]

Well, I finished and submitted paper #3.

Now I get to study...

[Genesis defender]

I'll just sit and watch the penguins.

Is that because you'll soon be walking like one? :-)