#stranded astronauts

[rednblacksalamander]

[existennialmemes]

"Astronaut who has been stranded in space due to a faulty spacecraft, develops eye condition due to overexposure to microgravity, and is not due to be rescued until February of next year."

Is a hell of a dystopian news story. Like. This sounds like the plotline to a B list sci fi thriller from 2006, not literally current events.

They wanna do luxury space travel missions, but they can't manage to rescue this astronaut (and her co-worker) from space before NEXT YEAR??

What an unconscionable fucking farce.

[filosofablogger]

A 'Toon Break

I wasn’t planning a ‘toon post just yet, but frankly I need a break this afternoon to get caught up on some things, and my ‘toon stash IS full again, so let’s just kick back this afternoon and have some ‘toons, okay?  Tomorrow starts the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, so I’ll no doubt have plenty to write about in the coming week, plus tomorrow morning is Jolly Monday and I must get…

[tlou-bombshell]

i'm shy as fuck, so if i ever say i want ellie in her death stranding outfit to literally hold her knife against my throat while she calls me her nasty little slut, i'd mean it

[itsybitsybatsyspider]

anyone wanna hear about my Martian Au?

[still--kicking]

I have vld brainrot so bad that whenever I read about those two astronauts stranded in space rn my brain goes straight to klance aus

[dankmemes23]

[vertigoartgore]

1998's Shadows & Light Vol.1 #2 cover by cover artist Lee Weeks.

[poisonhemloc]

The first thing we learn about Riebeck is they have a banjo. The second is Moraine is worried about their safety over that of everyone else in space, and the third is they’re clumsy to the point where if they had the translator, Hal is worried they’d break it. 

The clumsiness is easiest to address- why do we have the translator, not the resident xenoarcheologist? Why is our first task not ‘take this to Riebeck?’ And the answer is because they will break it on accident (and because we were half of the team that made it, but, I think that’s just another justification for us starting with and keeping it).

So, Moraine is hoping hearing Riebeck’s banjo means they’re alright- and Esker, if you read their notes, they were worried until they started hearing Riebeck’s banjo from Brittle Hollow. And when you do find Riebeck, at the far end of a trail they tell you they fell down, they tell you they’re scared of space. It’s an interesting choice for an astronaut- the other character we know of (Tuff) who is scared of space is firmly underground on Timber Hearth- so why give that trait to one of the travelers?

Because Riebeck needs to be at the Crossroads. There is a lot going on in Brittle Hollow and the Crossroads are the easiest way to get everywhere if you’re still learning the layout. And having that banjo playing loud and clear is a very handy way to find it easily.  Leading players to it, with Riebeck’s notes around the Southern Observatory and the gravity crystal workshop, and the banjo guiding them, is the best way to introduce it early before people get too frustrated trying to navigate the biggest (in terms of Nomai writing) planet in the system.

And the easiest way to keep Riebeck at the Crossroads, not at the Southern Observatory or the Hanging City or anywhere else, is to make them anxious to the point of staying right where they are despite their eventual goal- the Hanging City- being practically within view (Off topic but a detail I like, Riebeck is the only traveler without a pot full of stew next to their campfire- they have a kettle on, and marshmallows, but no fish stew. I chose to believe they were planning to keep going soon, not, they already ran out of rations taking so long to move along).

There isn’t as much of a ‘why here’ for Riebeck, compared to everyone else- they’re a xenoarcheologist, Brittle Hollow is the only planet you know has a Nomai settlement on it when you launch, of course that’s where they’ll be. Astronomer!Riebeck isn’t here, not with Hollow’s Lantern, and lazy!Riebeck never launched, adventurous!Riebeck is somewhere in the Hanging City and not useful for you navigating under the crust on Brittle Hollow. 

They could have been investigating ruins on a different planet- the only switch that would make sense is Gabbro and Riebeck (Astronomer Chert and ship fixer Esker don’t have reasons to be on Brittle Hollow, Feldspar is required to be Stuck), so we'd get Riebeck having panic attacks every time their island gets thrown into space, and Gabbro decided to stop and relax at the Crossroads and not the Hanging City. But, Riebeck won’t be on a random island if they were on Giant's Deep, they’d be on one of the two islands with Nomai ruins- so why even have the fourth island? They’d have a camp among proper Nomai ruins and be one more thing to explore in the middle of the history you’re hunting for, and the game is pretty consistent about keeping the Hearthians and the Important Nomai Knowledge from being on top of each other. Also, Gabbro’s ‘flute’ is the hardest to hear out of the traveler’s instruments- which makes it that much harder to follow them to the Crossroads.

Nah, that’s not gonna work. Riebeck has to be on Brittle Hollow, at the Crossroads, anxiously staying in one place, to make it easy for us to find them and navigate.

[furby-organist]

> "What do you mean there are two astronauts stuck in space?! And you people thought things were bad back in my day! Sure, we had no FDA, but we didn't have this!"

[kaisollisto]

i'm just saying I think it's more interesting if exile alien bea has an x amount of time to live and grapples with is it worth living was my life worthy of life? meets ava who is need of a host (because halo is very unstable) and doesn't know how to stop running and they smooch and fall in love and bea is like take my body as a host, you are full of love and you have taught me love and I want my love to continue to live through you and my body will be able to sustain your host so take me on adventures and show me the world that I never got to see and live through. Make me love the world through your eyes so I may possess a fraction of your love for the world that has failed me. And then bea dies and ava does that and that's the end

but i hate sad endings and cannot be what I sought to destroy.

[organised-disaster]

I just bought the whole pack for Outer Wilds because it was on sale and I'm already having so much FUN!!! I've experienced hilarious situations such as:

Anti-gravity cave! Yay! Down I go and off to the spot that requires repairs! Matching velocity and wait stop why is it moving away come back why am I spinning dear God no eeeesaaauuuuggggggGGGHHHH

Ew ew EW Dark Bramble Seed Ew Ew Ew oh no no mo MY SCOUT MY SCOUT THE ANGLERFOSH NONKNONKOOOOONOOO

To the geysers! And in I g- [blrbrlrbrlebrlblrlggh] oh yaya! A crystal like in the observatory! And it's got its own signal! Quantum displacement? What happens if i- [is subjected to the nightmare chorus] oh

And now we leave planet! Oh a roll function? What does that do? Let's find ou- [timeskip ten seconds, screaming as I spiral out of control into the gravitational pull of the sun]

Oho the universe locator!!! And there is Giant's Deep and the Sun and NOT the eye of the universe teehee and eugh [said with utter contempt] dark bramble

WHERE ARE YOU MYSTERY WHISTLE MAN. I WILL LOCATE YOU BY GETTING UP HIGH ENOUGH AND [exits Atterlock's orbit] oh no. guck. oh heaven help me. please no

I've accidentally locked onto the Interloper instead of Brittle Hollow, guess I'm heading there. [there] Wow this place is Barren™️. Guess I'll hop off now and - [narrowly avoids plummeting into Dark Bramble] WHAT THE HELL INTERLOPER. I THOUGHT WE WERE FRIENDS. WHY NOT DROP ME OFF SOMEWHERE AWESOME LIKE GIANT'S DEEP.

WJERE DID MY SJHIP GO [parked on the Ember Twin]

Distress beacon? What? Oh no, I need to find the source of it before - [the music]

[stares directly at a supernova while accelerating towards Timber Hearth with the intention of cooking a marshmallow and watching the solar system end from there]

Round two hjahaja! Destination one: Brittle Hollow! Now I just need to not plummet directly into the Black Hole That Sends You To The End Of The Known Universe©️ and I'll be good to start exploring! [ship smashes into the surface at 600km/h] nevertheless I am unharmed!

And now I will carefully descend so as not to fall into the Black Hole That Sends You To The End Of The Known Universe©️ and I can be on my merry [smashes into an overhang at Mach 2, corpse falls into the Black Hole That Sends You To The End Of The Known Universe©️]

[filosofablogger]

Did Someone Say 'Toons???

As I mentioned a coupl’a days ago when I posted cartoons, my file was so full I couldn’t squeeze ’em all into a single post, so I’m back with still MORE!!!  I swear the cartoonists must be working overtime these days … and our politicians are giving them soooooooo much material to work with!!!  Enjoy!

[aeoneskova]

do I only have a couple chapters left of both the honey honey sequel and goflb? Yes….

Am I instead writing a wolfstar Martian AU?

Also yes…

[spockvarietyhour]

Journey to the Far Side of the Sun

[luminarytimesmedia]

How Stranded Starliner Astronauts Will Cast U.S. Election Ballots from Space

The forthcoming U.S. election is anticipated to be closely contested, meaning every vote will be significant  including those cast from space.

NASA has announced that all astronauts aboard the International Space Station will have the opportunity to vote in November's election while orbiting the Earth, including the two-person crew currently stranded there after arriving on Boeing's defective Starliner capsule in June.

Veteran astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are now expected to return to Earth next February on a SpaceX spacecraft scheduled to launch this month. Although this means they will miss the chance to vote in person, NASA assures that the special technology in place for over 20 years will still enable them to fulfill their civic duty.

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