New Reality Seeds

[Flyndaran]

Early production of non-nuclear weapon creating fission reactor designs might help to promote nuclear power a good on its own.

Or some scare to make the risks seem more manageable.

A large near earth asteroid passing between the moon and earth might inflame the public's "love" of space programs.
At the very least it could get more off earth infrastructure with tether satellites etc.

[Flyndaran]

When would be a good time for such an event to occur?
Of course after further study, IW finds a few earlier divergences.
Also what would they name this alternate? Orion, N.E.O., Strangelove, Ares?

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by Drifter

...

I'm of the school that believes the Space Race was all about showing the other guy you could launch the biggest warheards directly into the heart of his country with great accuracy. So you still need that aspect.
....

For the chicken hawk politicians certainly. But for public support, I think you need classic dick-waving nationalism, and/or fear.

Combining them with a space program for defense against N.E.O.s and Americans first on Mars seems at least semi-plausible to me.

[combatmedic]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

Could anyone help with my TL 7 Mars colony idea?
I want the space race to keep going with Orion drives and get boots and an outpost on mars by 1979.

Maybe a Soviet successful moon landing/probes first could push America into pushing harder and longer to Mars.

I want it as realistic as possible physically if not necessarily politically.

Though avoiding the Viet Nam debacle somehow could free up a lot of resources, economically as well as cultural enthusiasm-wise.

Yeah, I'd have the Soviets beat the Americans to the Moon.

The massive humiliation and fear this would engender would make Sputnik look like small potatoes.


"Help Uncle Sam turn the Red Planet Red White and Blue. Buy Mars Bonds!"


Maybe have Kennedy lose to Nixon (assuming he didn't actually lose to Nixon IRL...it was close and questionable).


Nixon keeps out of direct war in Vietnam, but under him the States lose the Moon race to the Russkies.

Kennedy sweeps in on a promise to restore American prestige, and among other things he promises ''we will send a man to Mars in this decade."



Maybe?

[Flyndaran]

I wonder if unmanned Soviet Probes returning with samples would be enough. Once the moon has been sullied by Ruskies' tech, it wouldn't be as monumental to only one up them with people landing.
The public probably wouldn't understand just how much more amazing such a feat would be.
Might as well do what politicians do best, radically underestimate the scientific/engineering difficulty of their boasts.
But unlike certain modern examples, Kennedy would actually fund such a Mars project to where it might actually work.

U.S.S.R. might make a show of sticking with lunar projects before falling. But they might have made more headway than we did by 1989 or so.

[Astromancer]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

I wonder if unmanned Soviet Probes returning with samples would be enough. Once the moon has been sullied by Ruskies' tech, it wouldn't be as monumental to only one up them with people landing.
The public probably wouldn't understand just how much more amazing such a feat would be.
Might as well do what politicians do best, radically underestimate the scientific/engineering difficulty of their boasts.
But unlike certain modern examples, Kennedy would actually fund such a Mars project to where it might actually work.

U.S.S.R. might make a show of sticking with lunar projects before falling. But they might have made more headway than we did by 1989 or so.

Given that Nasa speeded up it's timetables for the Lunar Landing because they thought the Soviets planed to circle the moon, yes is clearly the answer.

[Flyndaran]

So for important dates.

1928 A meteorite strikes Lake Michigan during the Pineapple Primary. A newsreel crew covering the crowds catch the impact and subsequent tsunami-equivalent on film. This and the subsequent nightmare leaves a lasting imprint on young William Proxmire and his later political career making him very pro-space funding.
? Howard Jarvis dies in an auto accident possibly drunk
? Modified Baruch plan signed by all important parties.
1960, Nixon wins election
? Soviet unmanned moon landing
1964, Kennedy wins election with promises of going for Mars
? Mars slow supply ship reaches destination
1979, Mars colony lands (Just so I can keep everything solidly in TL7)

(So my birthday July 16th is globally important for the first atomic test Trinity, and first manned moon landing? Is it silly of me to want the Mars colony to also land on July 16th 1979?)

[dcarson]

With the popularity of nukes for power someone could come up with something like Zubrin's Mars plan earlier. Uses a reactor to make fuel from the Martian atmosphere and cuts the fuel carried for return by more the 90%.

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by dcarson

With the popularity of nukes for power someone could come up with something like Zubrin's Mars plan earlier. Uses a reactor to make fuel from the Martian atmosphere and cuts the fuel carried for return by more the 90%.

I think I'm missing something. There's no known sources of fissile material on Mars that I've heard of. And you simply can't go manned interplanetary with anything other than nuclear or obscenely multi-stage designs before TL 9.

I assume a nuclear reactor would allow processing of local water into chemical rocket fuel for launches off mars. SSTO would be possible for sardine packed astronauts to Martian LEO and main ship rendezvous, I think.

[dcarson]

You bring hydrogen and produce methane from the CO2 in the atmosphere. Eight tons of hydrogen lets you make 112 tons of methane. That provides fuel for local rovers and to get back to orbit and transfer to Earth. Google zubrin mars direct.