786: Exoplanets

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Exoplanets

Title text: I'm just worried that we'll all leave and you won't get to come along!

Explanation

In this comic, our friend Beret Guy runs to wake up Cueball with his potentially middle of the night revelation that Humankind is discovering "Exoplanets" or planets that exist outside of our solar system. The indication is that these planets are habitable enough for humans, even if just for a visit.

Then Beret takes it a bit further thinking that one of the countries on Earth could restart Project Orion. As Beret suggests, Project Orion was an early study that pushed for nuclear powered rockets for space travel. However, the one major downside of Project Orion was the fallout zone that the nuclear launch would present on Earth. But a nuclear launch in space on an asteroid or space station would not present those same problems. Then Beret references Stargate Atlantis when he mentions "City-Ships" as the city-ship Atlantis was the basis for the show. The city-ships on Stargate Atlantis are about the size of Manhattan.

So, to sum up the comic. Beret is very excited that we can see (with the Hubble telescope and other earth-bound telescopes) and find exoplanets. Then with some advances in space technology we can create nuclear propulsion in space to reach these planets.

And Cueball would just rather snooze.

Transcript

[Beret guy running towards a bed.]

Beret guy: Wake up!

Wake up!

Cueball: What is it?

[Beret guy looking at a bed with a mound under the blanket, presumably Cueball.]

Beret guy: We're alive during the time when they're first discovering other planetary systems! They're finding them as fast as they can find new instruments to look for them!

[Beret guy with his arms raised.]

Beret guy: And if one Earth's cultures advances it's space program enough to start enriching uranium on asteroids, we'll lose the main barrier to restarting project Orion and building nuke-riding city-ships!

[Beret guy kneeling over the bed. Cueball poking his head out from under the bedsheets.]

Beret guy: The only known technology capable of fast interstellar travel could be operational within just a few generations, and we're discovering all these destinations to pick from!

Come on!

Cueball: Can I hit "snooze"?

Beret guy: Okay, but just once!

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Discussion

There is no indication that SG:A is the city-ship being referenced. Atlantis does not fly by Orion-drive and is in no way the first Sci-fi reference to City ships. They go back at least as far as "Cities in Flight" by James Blish and possibly further, although I've found no evidence of this. 99.111.149.90 (talk) 12:04, 19 January 2013‎ (UTC) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

Also note that this comic is no. 786, which is the amount of known exoplanets. ‎152.93.147.10 (talk) 09:17, 21 February 2013‎ (UTC) (please sign your comments with ~~~~)

But this was released 2 years earlier than that count; still it's interesting factiod... Mark Hurd (talk) 11:07, 13 April 2013 (UTC)