Colonizing Ceres

Today we'll look at colonizing Ceres and asteroid mining, farming in space, and a potential distant future of a developed asteroid belt.
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Credits:
Outward Bound: Colonizing Ceres
141 Season 4 Episode 26
Writers
Isaac Arthur
Editors
A.T. Long
Derek Hightower
Evan Schultheis
Jerry Guern
Keith Blockus
Mark Warburton
Oliver Epsom
Sigmund Kopperud
Stuart Graham
Producer:
Isaac Arthur
Cover Artist:
Jakub Grygier www.artstation.com/jakub_grygier
Graphics Team:
Jarred Eagley
Jeremy Jozwik
Justin Dixon
Ken York
Kristijan Tavcar
Kris Holland (Mafic Studios) www.maficstudios.com
LegionTech Studios
Sam MacNamara
Sergio Botero www.artstation.com/sboterod?f...
Narrator:
Isaac Arthur
Music Manager:
Luca De Rosa - [e-mail]
Music:
Markus Junnikkala, "Hail the Victorious Dead" www.markusjunnikkala.com/
Kai Engel, "Endless Story About Sun and Moon" www.kai-engel.com/
Stellardrone, "Last Day On Earth" stellardrone.bandcamp.com
Epic Mountain, "Rising Sky" / epicmountain
Aerium, "The Islands moved while I was asleep" / @officialaerium
Phase Shift, "Forest Night" www.last.fm/music/Phase+Shift...
Lombus, "Amino" lombus.bandcamp.com

[@martintrobo7776]

"There are no laws in Ceres, just cops." Joe Miller.

[@koshnaranek3062]

Thought I would have the only expanse comment

[@jesseward4115]

Can Issac do a Cameo in season 4. His voice would be perfect for a belter.

[@smittyjohnson9554]

I'm so happy that Amazon is keeping The Expanse alive. It was depressing when Syfy cancelled it. Especially after they got access to so many new solar systems.

[@annoyed707]

@@jesseward4115 It's filmed in Toronto, so I'd have a chance to buy Isaac a coffee.

[@DavidChipman]

@annoyed707 Get in line, you! ;)

[@AvyScottandFlower]

Outward Bound: Isaac Becomes A Space Pirate

[@ogrehaslayers605]

AvyScottandFlower we NEED this.

[@lieps2547]

would love to see that

[@WaterspoutsOfTheDeep]

lol I would watch it

[@nerfinator03]

Please for april fool's

[@mjk9388]

Now THAT would be a show! Can he wear an eye patch?

[@francoislacombe9071]

If you can't fix it with duct tape, you're not using enough duct tape.

[@Stealtharrowthe007]

Or use Flex Tape.

[@HeIsAnAli]

Stealtharrowthe007 Not WD-40?

[@marcustulliuscicero5443]

#Minmatar

[@orghidanstefanandrei2861]

yes but that would add more mass requiring more fuel. super glue or something might be more efficient.

[@imbored742]

Duct tape, WD-40, and hammers can fix anything. If it ain't fixed you're either using the wrong one, or not enough.

[@mervjohnson8010]

I love your "slice of life" style episodes like this. The mundane hum-drum of how an out of town guy gets by, IN SPAAAAACE!

[@Razzmata77]

Almost there, but what you're missing here is some rocketships (_)_)::::::::::D~~ (_)_):::::::::::D~~ and some Bush did 911's . Great video by the way.

[@eclipsenow5431]

Yes, it makes it down to Earth for you... but IN SPAAAACE!

[@XaliberDeathlock]

Where the hell does that "IN SPAAACE" meme shit come from. It always sounds really childish to me.

[@mervjohnson8010]

XLBR For me it was the muppets. For others it's Portal.

[@XaliberDeathlock]

@@mervjohnson8010 thanks. Can't find the Muppets clip but the Portal one was really childish.

[@hafor2846]

Ceres was once covered in ice. Enough water for thousand generations. Until Earth and Mars stripped it away for themselves. This station became the most vital port in the Belt. But the immense ressources and wealth that flow through our gates? They were never meant for us. We Belters toil and suffer. Without hope and without end. AND FOR WHAT?

[@hackerdogesamuraidinossaur3904]

Aqua Beltalowda!

[@miles2378]

Do the Books talk about ceres after book 2 the series stops other than anderson Daws comming to Tyco station?

[@Blackpearlmatt]

@@miles2378 bit late but yeah Ceres is mentioned a fair bit in the later books, currently reading book 5 and it’s mentioned a fair few times

[@Covermeporkins11]

You sound like true belta sasa key?

[@mymixedbiscuit9159]

"Ceres was once covered in ice. Enough water for thousand generations. Until Earth and Mars stripped it away for themselves. This station became the most vital port in the Belt. But the immense ressources and wealth that flow through our gates? They were never meant for us. We Belters toil and suffer. Without hope and without end." "Nice speech." She said, with a smirk. Hazel jumped down from the ladder, and took a look at the underground powerhouse before her eyes. "Are these...?" "Yeah." Hazel looked at the array of INB's, she silently counted at least 26 of them. The workers registered the arrival of these 2, but did not react, and continued quietly, despite the fact that Hazel's guide was the Commander of the colony. "Wow...I'm speechless. I had no idea Ceres even had Interplanetary Nuclear Bombs." Commander Steele was unfazed and determined. "Ceres doesn't have Uranium, but Vesta does, its what we've been mining for the last 6 years. Really, it's the main reason we even wanted to colonize Vesta, besides the fact that its the 2nd biggest asteroid in the belt. We weren't mining for electronics." Hazel's eye flickered to the left of the room, where there were empty slots for where the INB's should have been, along with a green light reading DEPLOYED: 11 MONTHS Her heart sank, but she didn't speak. Hayley Clarke settled in her seat as the Starship vehicle touches down on the lunar surface after 16 hours of transit. The windows slowly opened, revealing the surface, but it was nighttime, so all she could hear was the mechanical whir of the vehicle along with the pilots radio chatter of local time and information to know. They had arrived at Artemis City. The windows opened, and she and Jeremy Hans, her seat neighbor, crowded around it. "Oh my gosh," she said, as the light shined through. "Are those city lights?" A few faint lights were visible off in the distance, but it remained pitch black outside, with only some landing pads visible functioned out of regolith. "I'm not gonna lie, the view looked better when it was descending. I could see the whole city." Jeremy explained with a chuckle. "I was too busy crapping my pants when it was landing. Not looking out the window!" Hayley said was a laugh. Her eyes locked onto two vehicles with flashing yellow lights approaching the vehicle. They were pressurized rovers, no doubt, and would ferry the 17 passengers to the Spaceport. Then, they could take the underground metro to the Dome - where the residential areas, mall, offices and more reside. Nonetheless, there are still over 100 habitats around the dome for various purposes, along with a huge spaceport covering a large field and another field on the other side of the city with drilling rigs. All in all, the population is in the thousands. Hayley was unspeakably excited to visit the moon, before it all went south. - Hazel Rodriguez woke up, looking out her large habitat window to the rest of Vallis, the capital and primary city of Ceres. Today was exciting; she got to leave Vallis entirely and go on an expedition to the Deep Unexplored Zone - or the DUZ. No infrastructure, no emergency help, no shops or anywhere to buy supplies from. She found it extremely scary. Hundreds of kilometers of pure nothing in every direction. After collecting rock supplies, she'll get to finally leave Ceres and return to Earth. Hazel Rodriguez was an interplanetary expat - a master of making people trust her, and ascending to the top. After 2 years on Ceres, she was ready to blindside her colleagues who all thought she was here to stay, and go back to Earth. A train took her from Vallis to Crystalloport, a settlement on the edge of The Cez, or the Ceres Exclusion Zone. She had just taken this train to Crystalloport and then a pressurized rover to the Cez, where she discovered Ceres' nuclear capability only a few days ago - importantly, Crystalloport is the gateway for expeditions deeper into the DUZ and beyond Ceres. "Now entering the Deep Unexplored Zone, please ensure that local laws, infrastructure..." The lights of the train cabin turned red, causing the few people in her carriage to flick their heads up and register their new location. 45 minutes later, she arrived at her destination. Crystalloport. She looked outside at the magnificent city lights, shaking her head in stunned approval that Ceres has more than Vallis as a major destination. "This train's final destination is Glacier Ridge, 7 hours away, after crossing the DUZ. Please ensure that..." - After 37 hours of collecting samples outside with a guided group of 4 others in the middle of nowhere, Hazel was ready to go back home. For breaks, they returned to the pressurized rover. It had been 2 days. - "Now arriving at Crystalloport." At Crystalloport, back in the cradle of civilization, people were scared and solemn. They looked torn. Unsure. When she checked the news, it was immediately obvious as to why. - Hayley was outside in her EVA suit, collecting samples in the regolith around the dome, when she was knocked to her feet, registering an explosion off in the distance. - Blayne was sitting in his car, driving through Sydney's skytowns, when he is pulverized to nothing in 2 seconds. - Sara was floating in her cabin, enjoying weightlessness in her 2nd suborbital tourism spaceflight, laughing at the experience and viewing Earth from below - when she notices 2 sharp bursts of light. "New York and Sydney. Holy shit." - Dorian walked through Star City, the financial beating heart of Mars in his EVA suit. An alarm sounded, and he ran for cover." - Colonel Joesph Antony of the US Space Force burst into the office of Venus Aerospace Command, showing the Commander of the airbase the radar of the last 15 minutes on his handheld screen. An airburst just 18km from the floating colony. A nuclear weapon sent above. He slowly nodded. "Secure the airships immediately." - Hazel burst through the doors of the commander of Ceres. She had been racing to get to Vallis for the past 16 hours. "Seriously? What the hell happened!" The commander stood up graciously. "Our bombs are more experienced than you think. We sent them a year ago to various planets. They just orbited them until everything was in place." Hazel thought of the innocent people killed, and then the people on far away cities on Titan, Europa, Enclaudes, Neptune, and other places. Then herself. "Tensions have been high for years. They probably have a few nuclear bombs orbiting Ceres and Vesta, they'll strike Vallis by the afternoon." She said firmly but politely under her breath. "I'm excusing myself to the bathroom." She said. 'FUC*!' Echoed through the bathroom walls. 'HOW DO I GET BACK TO EARTH', Hazel tried calming her down. 'F***!'

[@mervjohnson8010]

I'd really love it if you did an episode on "second skin" style space suits. Seeing the miner character sit in that small ship's cabin I couldn't help but think how that might not be so bad with a good space suit. His helmet is his computer and home entertainment system, he could lay in bunk doing just about anything online with his visor (considering light lag). Bathroom's are scaled down if the suit could handle hygiene too. It might literally be a case of plugging in some tubes into the wall while in his bunk and the suit recharges and cycles life support while he sleeps. It might not be luxurious, but it'd be cozy and personal and practical.

[@geekinutopia5899]

Oh, yes, sign me up for one of those spacesuits! And futuristic space glasses as well!

[@qubitgate.]

Creative

[@UpperDarbyDetailing]

These are often called "leopard suits" in fiction. John Ringo's Troy Rising series has a short blurb on their suits that actually goes into the construction, how it works, and why they don't work with current tech.

[@mervjohnson8010]

@@UpperDarbyDetailing Oh thank you!

[@UpperDarbyDetailing]

@@mervjohnson8010 didn't expect a new answer four years later huh?! Lol by the way, Dr. Travis S. Taylor and David Weber are excellent hard Sci-Fi authors too.

[@captainzenbi]

One thing I have always appreciated is that you don't just talk the science, but in small ways you inject the social aspects of humanity.

[@teknicalmage6370]

"Beucase there is gold in them there asteroids" I need that on a T shirt

[@jkfecke]

I hope my descendants grow grain on Ceres. Because it wouldn't be Ceres without cereals.

[@dracoargentum9783]

Jeff Fecke Serious Ceres Cereals?

[@milky_wayan]

Ceres-O's kzbin.info/www/bejne/jX3YZYNqnNSNZ9U

[@ceres9406]

Ok then...

[@francoislacombe9071]

Ceres is the Roman goddess of agriculture and grain crops, so it would be most appropriate.

[@myalt3019]

Food grown on low-gravity would probably taste weird

[@Shenaldrac]

I wish there was a video game like this. Running a small mining company, scouting for claims, minding your ship and crew, etc. Seems like it could be really fun and wouldn't be the kind of setting often visited in video games.

[@blackhairedgoon8218]

Shenaldrac Elite Dangerous isn't that far away from what you describe

[@Shenaldrac]

I'm specifically talking about something more along the lines of managing a company rather than a space fighter shooter, but I appreciate the recommendation :)

[@wouterdevlieger1002]

Well, there's golden oldie Fragile Allegiance, which has the managing asteroid mining company, defend against competitors theme. But I think you'd prefer something more contemporary like a version of Port Royal, set in near future in the asteroid belt. Maybe The Expanse level of technology?

[@kokofan50]

That could be a fun RPG or god-game.

[@wouterdevlieger1002]

kokofan50, well, if we're talking god mode, you're probably more into a simulator type game: high on purchasable items and expansions that are real scientific concepts, low on economic or engineering realism required to make them feasible in real life. Whatever suits your fancy. There are lots of types of games that I would like to play/make if they had a space setting with some aspect of reality.

[@SeraSmiles]

I feel like you're getting more comfortable telling stories in your videos. I love this style of lecture, huge props Arthur!

[@timothymclean]

Isaac, you really knocked it out of the park with this one. You always give these "how humans might live in X" videos a human edge to the cold, hard realities of space, but this feels less like a mere framing device and more like a rough outline for a hard sci-fi novella. Add some names and other details, flesh out the narrative a bit, and there you go. P.S. Big Fettling Gun...I need to remember that one.

[@monsterinhead214]

If you liked that story, try "Heavy Time" by C.J. Cherryh.

[@xXx_Regulus_xXx]

The Singularity Trap starts out a lot like this until the [spoiler] happens. Asteroid mining characters do make up much of the core cast for the whole book, though.

[@Chemson1989]

Beltalowda!

[@nicolaiveliki1409]

keep awe fram de akwa!

[@darthmortus5702]

You ain't na Beltalowda, you a Wellwalla!

[@nicolaiveliki1409]

kakamali kemang to shouxa welwala?

[@darthmortus5702]

Mi pensa you love inyalowda more than your beratnas, pampa.

[@anderazkuna6698]

Miller!! Where's that man?

[@Prometheukles]

Stay away from the AQUA

[@davecasey4341]

Yeah, it's all fun and games until some jerk dumps his pet alligator into the water supply.

[@Runetrantor]

Moving Ceres to Mars would rip the belt's heart out though. Better to buy a moon off Jupiter or something that has tons of them. :P My idea is for Ceres to be the government of the belt, and have a slowly growing swarm of inhabited asteroids moved into parking orbits around it, making it a fairly large population hub.Vesta, Pallas, and the other kind of large asteroids featuring their own swarms elsewhere to act as secondary hubs in other zones.

[@zka77]

No laws in Ceres, just cops!

[@suthinanahkist2521]

Cops with almost no power!

[@bonda_racing3579]

Where is that quote from?

[@joaocalheiros4160]

Beltalowda

[@AleksandrPodyachev]

@@bonda_racing3579 a TV show called The Expanse

[@JustinMakesVideos]

Maybe the Astroid belt might be a little bit like the Caribbean. Wealthy people who always dreamed about owning their own planet would be able to own their own little astroid. Maybe terraforming their asteroid, rounding them out, planting a flag and naming them. Also, like the colonial Caribbean there might be some issues with criminality and secessionists at that distance from larger settlements and authorities.

[@chinerpeton]

I'm curious how the Belter shanties will sound like :D

[@Mahlak_Mriuani_Anatman]

Holy shet, cool idea

[@johnhardin4358]

Breakaway culture is inevitable. Colonists are going to lack common ground with the feuds of Earth. Aliens will probably consider both the same. So if one or the other is attacked, the other will get dragged in by some Lusitania/Pearl Harbor/911 incident.

[@canzukcommonwealth7309]

They could always go back to Africa and return the land back to native Caribbean peoples

[@NeostormXLMAX]

it could be like the pirate ages. like holy shit, all these asteroids could be their small islands or habitats, and piracy would be every where and explorers and miners and prospectors would come to seek a fortune

[@vichodeivis1219]

Warning. Several Expanse references in the comments. Exposure to "The Expanse" material generates addiction and a complete loss of enjoyment while watching/reading low realism science fiction stories.

[@Solon1581]

As a fellow Belta, i know how you feel man. #Rememberthecant

[@antred11]

As great as The Expanse is, I would definitely not consider it particularly realistic.

[@km5405]

aside from the almost magically powerfull and efficient propulsion.

[@vichodeivis1219]

Since only aliens can openly twist the laws of physics, the Expanse counts as hard science fiction. Also the last time I check the ships didn't actively exchanged shiny balls of stuff in combat that where absorbed by magical bubbles surrounding them. And no touch screen exploded killing a person located several hundred meters away from a shiny ball impact.

[@vichodeivis1219]

Note: Everyone that has read book 7 Shhhhh

[@realzachfluke1]

Ceres is undoubtedly one of the absolute COOLEST Solar System bodies, period. It’s just so beautiful and mysterious. I hope we develop our tech enough to one day land people on this world, and another day to have a manned base on Ceres. Thanks for helping to quench us Ceres fans’ thirst, Isaac :~]

[@k98killer]

Zachary Fluke it's beautiful, sure, but you can't hunt giant, invasive pythons in a mosquito-filled swamp on a rock in the belt, so is it really all that great?

[@twirlipofthemists3201]

We have all the necessary tech. Just a few particulars to iron out.

[@ExtantFrodo2]

k98, in time there will be a huge variety of habitats with more varied ecosystems than you could find at any one time on earth. Heck, given the possible variations of gravity, atmosphere, topography and genetic engineering there could be quite a lot that would never be possible on earth. Evolution an only work with inherited traits. That is VERY limiting.

[@robertgraybeard3750]

ExtantFrodo2 Evolution certainly works with inherited traits but occasionally there is a beneficial mutation.

[@ExtantFrodo2]

Of course, but I was pointing out the contrast between products of design and products of evolution. Too many mutations at once (as would be necessary to turn a tetrapod into a hexapod for example) all working to the same benefit and none of them lethal just can't realistically occur. Each beneficial mutation has to be vetted in the context of all the other functions, aspects and systems of the body (probably over several generations to deal with seasonal variation as well) before being incorporated into the general gene pool. So every mammal, bird, amphibian, turtle, dinosaur, etc was a tetrapod. Any intelligent designer would not be limited to what can be inherited. We can cut and paste genes between species or design entirely new genes from scratch, make them with DNA compilers, use CRSPR/Cas9 to insert those (as well as any inhibitor or promoters and their triggers...). We can produce a lot more variation than evolution ever could. And we should. There should be courses in designing ecosystems... down to every last detail.

[@Crowbars2]

This is probably my favourite SFIA episode ever. I love the story and worldbuilding in just a 30 min video, it's like you're reading an excerpt of a sci-fi novel who's technology actually makes sense in the real world.

[@cannonfodder4376]

I always enjoyed your "Slice of Life" stories. Exploring the future through such a relatable human experience always gets my imagination running. Makes me hopeful for the future. Another fantastic episode.

[@puppetgrimm]

Great episode reminds me of Titan and how you could use the nitrogen and hydrocarbons to create fertilizer to sell to other colonies, fuel and who knows what else. If more people see what a great economy we could have throughout the solar system they may be more likely to spend to get us there. good job!

[@Smellslikenarcspirit]

I think that there is no economy anymore. Money exist because there was scarcity. But whit all the mass production we do and have not only the earth for recources anymore, who the hell does need money when everything is in abundance.

[@UpperDarbyDetailing]

It kills me when people say "why are you spending all that money on space" as if we're fueling the rockets by burning cash. Tens of thousands of people already make a living from space. Some studies show that for every dollar spent on space we've added eight dollars to the economy. Some people are short sighted. They fear the sky.

[@HistoryTime]

Fantastic. Thanks for this, Isaac. Ceres features heavily in a novella I'm writing so this is really useful stuff.

[@zigzagduck952]

+History time Wish you good luck with that.

[@HistoryTime]

zigzag duck I basically use Isaac to fact check my work :,) so useful

[@zigzagduck952]

I think that's his thing, to give a plausible framework for others to build from.

[@UpcycleElectronics]

Future History Time w/ Pete *Count me in!* -Jake

[@lilly4380]

Well, if you ever release it, I for one would love to read it :)

[@Lukegear]

Let's create an Isaac Country in a dwarf planet!

[@fredricknietzsche7316]

Lukegear It has to be called "Arthursday"

[@error5202]

I like this idea

[@nicolaiveliki1409]

Fredrick Nietzsche as opposed I am to religion, but we should rename Thursday to Arthursday and make it the standard day off during the week

[@DonCDXX]

To one day find myself growing berries on Ceres has been my dream for some time now.

[@isaacarthurSFIA]

:) That's a neat one, much less cliche than most space dreams, mine included. I'll admit I used blueberries here mostly because they do okay with partial shade and to tease a friend of mine, she just started a blueberry farm this year.

[@DonCDXX]

My dream would be that a low gravity environment would make a hydroponically or aeroponically grown apple tree as the massive center of a garden dome, with the surrounding area loaded with berries and a variety of edible plants of the Brassicaceae family. Legumes and grains tend to be less visually appealing in a garden and can just be grown in efficient stacks in a back room under LEDs. In that combination of plants is everything humans need to eat to be healthy, though some vat-grown meat would be a nice addition.

[@z-beeblebrox]

*HEADLINE:* DonCDXX's serious series of various buried blue berries a sensation with Ceres' weary sappers seeking something sweet to marry with sherry

[@barahng]

Isaac Arthur I'd much rather grow potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, anything but blueberries. They're a huge pain in the ass to grow in my opinion. They require a different soil pH than everything else in my garden and never grow well. I suppose if you're growing hydroponic monoculture blueberries this wouldn't be a problen. I still think you'd get a lot more calories/$ out of potatoes.

[@DonCDXX]

200% SMUG The soil pH may be a nuisance, but maintaining pH in hydroponic systems is much easier. It would be impractical to have all the plants in the garden on a single nutrient reservoir so making short rows of plants sharing a reservoir means that problem in a single row doesn't cascade to the whole garden. Like plants can get like conditions without extra workload. I say leave soil for grassy fields in recreation areas. Hydro out does soil for grow time, water efficiency, and cleanliness.

[@VisiblyPinkUnicorn]

We're returned to the Outward Bound *Ceres*

[@geekinutopia5899]

He! Funny!

[@ChrisBrengel]

groan... ;) [it took me a second]

[@AndDiracisHisProphet]

the outward bound ceres?

[@infamousempire8302]

AndDiracisHisProphet terrible, terrible pun. Dislike.

[@Nobody-11B]

AndDiracisHisProphet hahaha!!

[@Nobody-11B]

David Vargas why so sirius?

[@BobbinMcferry]

*ce-wheez

[@AndDiracisHisProphet]

you are quite mistaken, david. it is an awesome pun

[@animistchannel2983]

One of the best things about living on Ceres would be the "wing dome" where you can do 3-D flying versions of various sports. Giant geodesic sphere air-buffer tank for the colony, and you can play in it :)

[@joshuaginoza9446]

I have no drink and I have no snack... Wish me luck friends.

[@coryray8436]

I got up early and brewed a pot of coffee just for Arthursday.

[@darkanice7]

ahhhhh! ;)

[@Nobody-11B]

joshua ginoza pack a lunch next time like the rest of us.

[@palfers1]

Oh. So screwed :)

[@holidaycomplex]

snacc

[@Solon1581]

#RemembertheCant

[@chrisgaming9567]

#BelterLivesMatter

[@frjoethesecond]

#IUnderstoodThatReference

[@neuromancer8796]

@@chrisgaming9567 well well well

[@erika002]

@@neuromancer8796 his comment aged well

[@neuromancer8796]

@@erika002 aged like fine wine lol

[@fsmoura]

18:31 _"Stealth [is] impossible in space"_ What!?! (o.o ) *_*derails thread by starting to make proposals to achieve stealth in space*_*

[@Sammy_82]

Unless you got Eros with some blue shit.

[@williamsmith1741]

"Entertainment Industry", "Recreation"

[@massimookissed1023]

William Smith , yep, Astritutes.

[@williamsmith1741]

#Trademark!

[@williamsmith1741]

Could always combine agricultural production and entertainment services, open up a chicken ranch. kzbin.info/www/bejne/m5uqhqyAiM96fas

[@massimookissed1023]

Damn, if you've trademarked that, I guess I'll have to start herding Prosmonauts™

[@williamsmith1741]

And so was born the darkest struggle humanity will ever face in space. Astritutes vs. Prosmonauts! God help us all!

[@ArchAngelThomas]

I just started Revelation Space. I'm about 80 pages in and loving it so far. Thanks for the recommendation!

[@mrmadmaxalot]

I heard about that book here too, and then just happened to see nearly the entire series at the thrift store. Bought, read, and loved them all! Though sadly Chasm City was missing from the group.

[@MAD-SKILLZ]

ArchAngelThomas Oh yes! I won't spoil, but after hearing about it from this channel and reading it, it is one of my favorite books, ever. Seriously looking forward to reading the rest of the novels by Alastair Reynolds.

[@aaronmcculloch8326]

Ha! I just started it two nights ago, I'm liking it so far!

[@v.k.8153]

Oh, Revelation Space was great!

[@merrittanimation7721]

I also liked the book. If only I could find Chasm City...

[@bad-n3964]

Quick someone give me a drink and a snack

[@hamentaschen]

4th of July... Then strait into Arthursday... Its like two holidays in a row!!

[@zigzagduck952]

+Black dog: Is this a bad time to remind you that you still owe us a boat load of tea ? Or did you think we had forgotten ?

[@otisgetman6074]

zigzag duck , wasn't that a tax write off? Lol

[@DanteS-119]

You crossed a strait into Thursday? ARE YOU A SPACETIME LORD??

[@zigzagduck952]

lol

[@jesseward4115]

Umm we payed off that debt in world war 1 and 2. Just sayin.

[@c.augustin]

Great story! One of the best episodes I watched so far …

[@Jondiceful]

Great video! I have long lamented the lack of strategy games that incorporate the complexities of orbits especially like those of the asteroid belt. The fact is, we've been spoiled as Earthlings where continental drift barely factors into the history of our species, let alone civilization. Maps here don't change much over the centuries apart from who controls what. Leaving Earth requires an entirely new mindset. Games like chess, go, Risk etc all make use of flat fixed boards. Even many games featuring civilizations in space have the same characteristic flat fixed maps. This is actually very important to think about because once we leave the surface of Earth, all that changes. Whether your interest is tactics or logistics, politics or commerce, these constantly shifting orbits become vital elements of any plan, and every plan becomes a dynamic perpetually evolving and adapting endeavor. It seems to me that this way of thinking on the whole is still entirely alien to humanity, and we are wholly unprepared for it. I have no doubt we will adapt, but I think history will show that the early adopters will be the first masters of the solar system.

[@SailorBarsoom]

I'm now imagining some massive board game, where little 5*5*5 "active zones" constantly change distance from each other, and moves from one "active zone" to another take anywhere from five turns to a hundred, depending on when you start the journey. The pieces and moves could be rather chess-like in active zones, but utterly different between them, probably only long, single moves which take multiple turns. Either takes a very large game room and elaborate equipment to play, or is played in virtual reality. Not a full-blown space-scape, but rather an eight thousand cubic metre "game board" where everything is constantly moving.

[@carloharryman]

Aurora 4x

[@multilevelintelligence]

Man...wow. that is true. But if we move to silicon based scentience the drift of the asteroids in the belt will be as slow for us as the continents drifting on earth. our electronics descendants will say. then ancient minds took several millions nanoseconds do evolve. now we can change our strategy in 5 nanoseconds. it a blink of a virtual eye :)

[@johnhardin4358]

Hitler was not well prepared for the overhead front. However you master the 3D battlefield, the 4th dimension can pull the rug out from under you. Hitler got a handle on that but seems to have run out of time. Or into it. That corpse has yet to be accounted for.

[@LuckyPig]

Ah... I miss "The expanse" already :)

[@isaacarthurSFIA]

At least we'll get another season after all, and books are still around, I've finally broken down and started listening to book 4 last night so I didn't have to wait :)

[@karimshebeika8010]

oh wow you are in for a treat

[@sierravortec2629]

Didn’t Amazon save it?

[@JamesVDBosch]

Amazon, and Jeff Bezos himself stated that The Expanse will move to Amazon for the coming seasons. The next season is also currently being written :P

[@USSAnimeNCC-]

Their should have been a expanse marton yesterday

[@brandonhanson9358]

Isaac you are the single most impotant space fact and imaginative adventures on space colonization I’ve ever seen. If your still doing these 20 years down the road you have my business. YOU ARE AMAZING. PLEASE keep this up it keeps me out of dark places. You save more people on space stuff then you’d believe. Thankyou

[@reignpagaran740]

‘Tis Arthursday, my dudes 👌🏽

[@primachpepe8597]

now all i can think is Isaac in a spiderman costume... why have you done this hahaha

[@jesusdiscipledon1499]

Please take us with you, Issac. Don’t leave us here.

[@karlharvymarx2650]

Seems like that cylindrical ship with the 2 spheres might be a good place to film.

[@matthewjackman8410]

Work over: Check Beer: Check Arthursday?: Check Times are good

[@UpcycleElectronics]

Has anyone ever tried to reach out to Alcon about using footage and images from The Expanse on SFIA? Seems like a perfect fit and an easy way to passively promote both the production and source some nice imagery. Assuming Alcon would agree to a simple terms arrangement like a small logo similar to other artist content currently used and maybe allowing for an end screen credit, that would certainly have a positive impact on me as a viewer. I stopped watching The Expanse in season 2 when I stopped watching cable in general. Just hearing all the Expanse fanboys on here has begun to motivate me to hit up Netflix to finish S2. That has a good chance of getting me motivated to pony up to S3. A company such as Alcon that is capable of generating interest and support through crowd funding for an alternative platform/investors, (just skimmed TE wiki for the Amazon/SyFy drama info) is probably capable of accommodation for advanced passive promotional exposure through a channel like SFIA on YT ;) -Jake

[@EhhPekk]

This is a really good idea, wish I could tag Isaac here for that.

[@UpcycleElectronics]

Christopher Hill All CC's use YT Creative Studio. We get most comment notifications for the comments on our own uploads through the regular notifications system like everyone sees, but these are still not 100% reliable. Most people use the official YT Creative Studio app because it shows all the channel metrics and every single comment. If a CC logs into the desktop version of YT, it also has all comments available in a section. If Isaac is super busy he might not make it down the list for awhile but he does see all of the comments. The bigger a channel gets the harder it is to respond to everything. There's also a good chance he just isn't interested, or sees my name and doesn't read past the first line shown on the notifications list. The algorithms that filter spam have improved greatly, but a lot of CC's still react to anything that looks like another CC with suspicion. Although that is changing slowly as people realize some of us watch and upload content. Anyways... I can guarantee you that he either has or will eventually see this ;) -Jake

[@EhhPekk]

Upcycle Electronics that’s good to know! I’d love to see Alcon contribute content for the channel, it’d be a mutually beneficial relationship with how Isaac has been growing too!

[@Teboski78]

If your solution to a problem involved in space travel doesn’t involve either ductape, or giant lasers, than it’s likely a dubious proposition.

[@lowrads3653]

With the low gravity, creating a borehole on gravitationally differentiated Ceres shouldn't be an insurmountable challenge. With that, you have access to thermal energy as well as dense and radioactive materials.

[@ebonaparte3853]

Ceres may not have much internal heat.

[@lowrads3653]

If it's gravitationally rounded, it must have had some at some point.@@ebonaparte3853

[@gemmasterian4496]

I wonder what the next season of Altered Carbon will be about whether they follow with the books or maybe doing some sort of prequel or fill in the gap between the books or even go in some other direction.

[@billmalcolm4291]

Go up, young man!

[@JB-gw8ee]

Another fantastic episode. Been thinking about Ceres since getting into the Expanse.

[@berzklans]

Now my day is complete!

[@AltimeterAlligator]

I love the idea of rival duct tape suppliers, locked in a bitter struggle for asteroid miners' bling money. That's an excellent story waiting to be told.

[@djbeachbob491]

Thanks for Making My day 100 times better after a Hard day on the work

[@adamjbond]

The blueberry guy reminds me of those who made out the richest in the California Gold Rush, not the miners but the people supplying them, like Levi-Strauss and his miners clothes.

[@massimookissed1023]

Adam Bond , the gold rush supplier who made the most money by having a monopoly of goods, was an Irish American who died penniless :)

[@theutopianoutopioan464]

There'd be taxes in the future? I don't see how any Earth government would be able to enforce its tax laws in space, especially in the asteroid belt or outer solar system.

[@dannygjk]

Any materials shipped to Earth would be subject to seizure unless taxes were paid. :) Now if a colony became large enough to declare it's own independence then we would have a similar situation to that here on Earth between Europe and North America.

[@theutopianoutopioan464]

Dan Kelly, I'm wondering if there'd be space police enforcing the edicts of Earth's politicians on people living on Luna, Mars, in asteroid villages, and other places outside their jurisdiction. I think that part of the motivation for private organizations to build cities, towns and villages in outer space and or on other planets and moons would be to get away from the clutches and iron fists of the existing governments on Earth, the same reason why we might see floating communities in international waters of Earth's ocean.

[@copiacopia12ictvohi76]

The Utopiano Utopioan, I'm not sure how any Earth government will enforce its laws and taxes beyond Earth, given they have a hard time enforcing their laws on the ocean on Earth. I just don't see it.

[@5thDragonDreamCaster]

Great video as always. I liked how you talked about how we can't appreciate the difference in brightness between sunlight and indoor lighting. The bling miners, I could imagine a miner wearing a solid gold necklace with SWAG in shining letters, along with a pair of gold rimmed shades. I do have one thing to say regarding Lumens and the CIE, and it not anybody but theirs fault. Lumens are not perfect. The CIE calls anything over 700nm 'infrared', which is crap. Far-Red is a region from 700-800nm, that is somewhat visible to humans. It is a strange transition zone in between red and infrared. I remember looking at a sunset and seeing some neat looking intense red wispy clouds late in the sunset. I wanted to take a picture, but the clouds didn't show up on the camera, neither did some of the red in the sunset. With what I knew about how most cameras are made, I had an idea. I had a spare one of those 700nm cut-off lenses from a camera I had modified. I decided to look through this cut-off lens with my own eyes, and I saw the intense red clouds disappear and a lot of the red from the sunset disappear. This video by the small channel Billy-Bobus talks about far-red and does a few demonstrations. kzbin.info/www/bejne/iKHYfoOCfc5_qpY He will have a part 2 explaining why far-red is not infrared, as well as demos anybody can do at home to prove that point.

[@DonTekNO]

We currently have perfect weather over here, clear blue sky, 30°Celsius ..... nah fuck it, i'll stay inside... Issac is telling a story about a far more interesting place

[@blakewalsh9489]

With domes on vacuum worlds I wonder if they need to be insulated at all when using nuclear reactors for a significant fraction of electricity generation. It would appear that when doing energy-intensive things like producing fuel via electroylsis there would be such a vast excess of waste heat that has to be radiated away that Domes basically could be radiators for low-grade heat and tropical biomes would be very easy: in fact the warmer it is in the dome, the more heat could be radiated away by the dome. It's an interesting thought, because we tend to think that because places like Mars and Ceres are cold, that the domes might be kept a bit chilly to save energy: the opposite might turn out to be true, the domes are kept toasty to help improve cooling effeciency and mainly tropical plants are grown.

[@isaacarthurSFIA]

There's a lot of option, you might for instance make an RTG for power with a half life on par with whatever LED you used for light, and just use that as a power/heat/light source, no moving part to speak of, decently compact.

[@geekinutopia5899]

Though, you don't want things too hot inside a dome on Ceres, about 10 - 24 degrees Celsius ought to be sufficient.

[@Frosty14748]

Are we Ceres about colonizing this asteroid? Fantastic video, as always. Nice graphics too!

[@wouterdevlieger1002]

Frosty14748: dwarf planet. Or full blown planet, whatever you think Jupiter is ;-)

[@stapuft]

Isaac Arthur I am mesmerized by your videos man, great stuff! I want this to become a movie, with the talking at the end having a Montage of it happening, ending with him, on the rockhopper 3, a huge luxury liner overlooking his "kingdom" and it pans back to look around him, inside the yacht, all the Holo pictures of his life, his wife, (the woman who helped him) his family, their family, and his grandson\daughter being the first president, of the United belt.

[@Comicsluvr]

I just finished the 'Purpose' video and I wanted to say thank you for such a positive, uplifting video. I'm 55 and one of the main goals in my life is to live long enough for tech to be developed to help me live longer lol. I look forward to meeting you in purpose on the century anniversary of the creation of your channel. By the way, if you're interested in games, Stellaris uses a lot of the topics like space stations, Dyson Spheres, etc. Another game called Space Engineers can simulate the idea of the lone prospector finding a strike in space.

[@Fancyfilmss]

Isaac you are now a beratna of all beltalowda

[@slagondrayer447]

Nope, I am going to be a space pirate. Snag up all those metals shipments and start building Gundams.

[@kevincrady2831]

8 people had their ships come apart while launching on the BFG. Cere-ously, how does one go about disliking an Isaac Arthur video? This one is awesome for any would-be sf writer. Asteroid miners, the folks who sell to asteroid miners, corrupt and powerful corporations, claim-jumpers, even Space Pirates (!), all given hard-sf plausibility. :D Happy Arthursday (Arrr-thursday?) everyone!

[@krunkopolis1921]

Thanks Issac. I love how you speak about these fantastical future possibilities like they've already happened. Keep up the good work!

[@Giganfan2k1]

You have completed my week again. I bet a lot of people here like pen and paper role playing games. Anyone interested in a roll20 Traveler session?

[@Giganfan2k1]

For now gauging interest. But I have had a bunch of traveller books for a while and dice are burning a hole in my pocket. Think they are the latest version of traveller.

[@patbak235]

Interested

[@victorianoble3374]

Never heard of Traveler before, it looks interesting.

[@Tacticslion]

I’m uncertain, but you mmmmaaaayyyyyy have more success with the (sadly much, much more “fantasy”) Starfinder or even a Star Wars game, but I know Traveller (flaws and all) needs more love, so good luck! I would have been tempted to join you, were I not running my own games, right now, and that’s eating up all my free life right now!

[@Atomkriegg]

Best day of the week!

[@cluckeryduckery261]

Another excellent episode. The colonization videos are my favorite on the channel, followed closely by Fermi. I think the reason is that it doesn't just discuss things that may actually be possible within the next few generations, but much of it does a great job of explaining near - future technologies or even future applications of existing technologies. It's a nice nuanced blend of story telling, education, and entertainment. Thought provoking as always.

[@UsAsWeAre]

This is one of the best episodes of this show so far. Perhaps the best. I love the use of narrative to convey the complexities.

[@TheExoplanetsChannel]

Awesome as always !

[@aravindhanil7235]

Yayyyy another video Good work Arthur Also happy Arthursday everyone

[@v.k.8153]

Taki, Beltalowda! The Belt thanks you, comrade!

[@delicious_lunch3823]

I've been a regular watcher of the channel for a couple of years now, and for whatever reason this is my favorite video. I've probably watched this about 30 times over the last year and a half, and keep coming back to it.

[@robsycko]

You forgot to mention the smell of the inside of the ship.

[@totalermist]

Since even the ISS is relatively odour-free [1] and current astronauts are fine drinking recycled urine all day, I doubt there would be much of a smell-problem. Plus I guarantee that the relevant systems would be the first to get the duct tape treatment in case of failures ;) [1] gizmodo.com/how-nasa-deals-with-odor-inside-the-international-space-1648864449

[@tastyfrzz1]

Would there be more freedoms on a mining Outpost or would it be more of a martial law setup? I can see it being like Las Vegas.

[@cherriberri8373]

I LOVE the story videos that have still have so many facts, but I bet it's a bit harder to produce. Thanks for the awesome video!

[@philswede]

As always- love your voice, how you talk and your entire team of hard working ppl. Keep up the good work and keep your wonderfully calming voice and how YOU use it

[@ivan0e281]

Happy Arthursday!

[@aserta]

One problem. If necessity is the mother of ingenuity and humans are crafty, within 40 solar days, i'd be melting rocks to make metal and craft myself ship improvements. Somehow, i don't see humans on the belt settling for mere cobbling, they certainly didn't when the West was "conquered". We look at wagons and think, antiquated, old, spring leaf travelling boxes, but truth is, there wasn't a single one out there that didn't get improved from the goods of the lands (i stake this claim by watching YT channels that restore and care for those relics, they have changed my outlook on what colonizing the West was/meant for the regular folk that ran in wooden wheeled carriages with meager, but decent comforts).

[@kayondothomas7343]

U wont melt those rocks if the "Ceres Constitution" forbids it

[@robneff7084]

At least not where people can see it. There's a lot of rocks that aren't categorized and labeled at this point. If we can smuggle gold from illegal mines in Africa to jewelry companies in NYC today, then future miners will be able to smelt some iron to use on their ships when they are thousands of kilometers away from the next living human.

[@avishalom2000lm]

@@robneff7084 And for that matter, what would stop pirates from diverting or capturing precious metal bundles sent from their claims? Even if these things could be tracked and monitored from start to finish, how fast could you send a ship (manned or unmanned) to bring it back? Just like the Spaniards had to accept a certain amount of "shrinkage" from New World galleons lost due to storms or piracy, this may be an issue for asteroid mining.

[@Dragrath1]

I don't see why they wouldn't mine out asteroids and use the available materials to construct repair or improve mining operations moreover I would expect for automation to dominate the industry effectively processing and assembling asteroid materials into advanced 3D printed mining units. Rubble pile asteroids would be exceptionally easy to process and would make excellent first targets it would be far too easy to have roaming mining fleets piracy the topic of the most recent video may play hand and hand with this as a mining fleet could pull piracy on the side targeting competitors. You would probably need very little crew letting robotic drones do the bulk of the work mining, refining and extracting desirable materials and perhaps putting waste materials to use as scrap materials for luxurious O'Neil cylinders readily to be sold to the highest bidder. Small scale mining as depicted here wouldn't really be able to match that efficiency as they would need far more crew to get far less material and would likely need to settle for more concentrated minerals. In the end mining colonies might be gathering and taking asteroids back to their base station to be refined into various goods or valuable raw materials. No constitution could prevent this in the vast primarily empty space known as the asteroid belt since they would have no way to stop you after all who else could afford the raw materials to match your fleet of ready to launch relativistic kill missiles you could assemble on demand?

[@E1025]

What a great story, I loved it! Thank you so much for putting out stunning, sizeable content like this

[@acegarcia3719]

Ceres looks to be an interesting. A place with rich captialists owning mining companies the astorid belt and citizens working to mine them.

[@MrxstGrssmnstMttckstPhlNelThot]

I didn't get a notification despite the bell and settings. Yoooouuutuuuuuuuuuuubbbbbe!!!!!!!!! *shaking fist*

[@isaacarthurSFIA]

They've apparently been rather bad about that recently, along with unsusbcribing people, though every creator I know who has asked after it gets a 'there is no problem, this does not happen' kind of reply. Part of why I stick to a schedule, 11 AM EST every thursday :)

[@MrxstGrssmnstMttckstPhlNelThot]

Man, after watching this I really wanna be a beltalowda now. Sigh.

[@tonysmith2360]

Just subscribe

[@MrxstGrssmnstMttckstPhlNelThot]

Tony Smith I did. A long time ago. And I hit the bell AND I fixed my settings so I'm supposed to get notifications... that's why I'm complaining. I still saw it in my subscription feed. That's why I watched it. Wut?

[@geekinutopia5899]

@@isaacarthurSFIA So, do you think we could dome Ceres over? I know Ceres has too little gravity for conventional terraforming, but how about encasing it in a giant geodesic sphere?

[@groovncat5817]

Thank u Sir Issac 🖖

[@ThanksIfYourReadIt]

You're intro sound was sooo rich and good. Whatever you done there do it all the time! Also a Suggestion of what to talk about -Digital resurection : Gathering enough information of a favored person to recreate him/her in a digital format. Like we would gather everything about you and have you make videos like this on a daily basis due to youre digital format.

[@isaacarthurSFIA]

Yes I think that's my second favorite series intro song we use, right after the one for Upward Bound.

[@yurivolte]

amazing as always... already hyped AF about the work with Michael!!! you both are great an so much interesting and fun! thanx a lot!

[@evan448]

You forgot to include the colonies stock market lol... if they are generating that much money and are that dependent on commodity prices and futures contracts I guarantee they would be a whole business area dedicated to people buying and selling futures contracts for those minerals as well as investing the money in various miner companies. Each miner and person living their will also be an investor In the same way that every resident of a shipping port in the age of sail was an investor in the shipping and whaling industries Cheap credit will help them develop quickly fund more companies and projects It also means big financial companies out there will be big players on earth providing perhaps even us earthlings a line of credit for our mortgages It also means a lot of shady business think Enron of the asteroid mining industry This place would be a crazy place to live full of gamblers and the deeply ambitious

[@suthinanahkist2521]

The precious minerals could also be used as the basis for a banking system beyond Earth. Imagine for example, getting a mortgage for a home on Luna or Mars, getting a spaceship loan akin to today's auto loans, depositing some financial resources on another planet or moon, etc.

[@ronilwaslin]

Excellent episode! Really enjoyed this one.

[@ryonalawson3852]

Love watching these. I like how you present this like a story

[@TomOostenrijk]

Ceres Beltalowda! Sasa?

[@PlatinumSpartan077]

Sabaez ke copeng!

[@jetflaque8187]

Sasa ke Bossman Tom!

[@MDJ5]

aye bossman!

[@zka77]

Stay away from the owkwa

[@jonathanryan9946]

Blingstronaughts?

[@jetflaque8187]

thanks for always making my week arthur!

[@bradstevens8030]

Im so glad i found your channel, i especially like to watch your videos on long car rides to pass time in a fun way!

[@richardsanchez8072]

Who dislikes an Issac Arthur video? The man is a genius.

[@thomashewitt8104]

Only Issac Arthur can make “there’s gold in them there asteroids” sound EPIC

[@jeffmathers355]

I like the story telling format that incorporates the concepts. Great video, Isaac!

[@michs1708]

another great Vid Isaac. thanks and look forward to seeing next weeks! cheers

[@RovingTroll]

Isaac Arthur, could you bring back your speech impediment? I really adore your earlier videos. That said, I'm really proud of your progress in your speech skills, and I'm sure that was one of your goals with this channel, keep up the good work!

[@nazamroth8427]

So.... I seem to recall that international treaties establish that no one owns anything in space or something like that? If I were to suddenly get myself space travel, establish outposts on major bodies, and use the age-old british tactic of putting flags on them and claiming them in my name, who would do and what to stop me? O.o .....incidentally, what is the market price for asteroids these days?

[@z-beeblebrox]

Nobody would do anything because they can't reach you. Space law as it is now only matters based on the assumption that everyone doing stuff in space must inevitably return to Earth (or never left Earth in the first place, like aerospace companies arguing over launch windows). If your plan is to stay up there forever, that all goes out the window. Although keep in mind that if you rely on intensive supply chains from Earth to you in order to survive, that will mean playing by Earth rules. Similarly in the video's scenario, since Earth was effectively the only buyer of astroid minerals, the miners were beholden to age-old treaties and laws before taking their cut of the haul.

[@hafor2846]

Lawyers and law experts are already starting to think about extraterrestrial law more in depth. What we have currently is good enough for our satelites and exploration missions. If we seriously push outwards, there will be new laws...

[@totalermist]

"what is the market price for asteroids these days?" See here: www.asterank.com

[@kingslushie1018]

Boy do I love this channels. I look forward to all of your uploads. I hope you have a wonderful day :)

[@mjk9388]

Another superb episode. Great job!!!

[@Nobody-11B]

Is this going to be an entire Ceres??

[@davidlericain]

Nobody Such a bad pun. Io you one back.

[@MAKAWELI187]

Taxes? Like in space tax? Hahaha you gotta be kidding.

[@geekinutopia5899]

Not like Earth governments would be able to easily enforce their tax codes beyond their borders.