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»»» Location: Glendalough Orbital
»»» Sender ID: Elena Voigt
»»» Recipient ID: Crayter Republic
To whom it may concern,
As of late, the Forlorn Hope has found itself in a situation where it will have to rely on its friends from the Crayterian Republic to succeed. Your expertise will be needed.
Since you have been prosperously terraforming and colonizing Planet Yuma for quite a while by now, and have proven to be capable of creating gigantic artificial islands, we assume that you have acquired a reliable, profound knowledge in water management over the course of the terraforming process. This knowledge could come in handy for us now.
I will keep myself brief for now: What we require is a certain level of guidance and knowledge exchange in how to handle water collection, independently, without the need of constant supplies. We are currently in the process of raising a modular station, and it would be a pleasure for us to know the Republic by our side, helping us with the above-described matter.
We are looking forward to your answer.
Yours sincerely, Knight Captain Voigt
The Forlorn Hope
My name is Catherine Corvin. I am one of the chief researchers of the 53rd "Athena" Research Squadron. We're what you could call the field operatives in all matters related to science and discovery, under the flag of the Crayter Republic.
Your message came as a surprise, I'll admit, but nonetheless not something we wish to turn away from. It would be a pleasure for both me and my colleagues to aid you with the knowledge you seek. Still, I believe a proper, more in-depth, description of your intentions would be of use, so that we can find the best solution to your needs. There is, as well, a concern coming from the higher levels of authority, regarding the location and purpose of this new station you speak of; but, I'm sure we can find a more secure channel for you to relay such information.
I'll wait for your thoughts on how you wish proceed.
Regards, Catherine Corvin. 53rd Research Squadron
Crayter Republic
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»»» Location: Glendalough Orbital
»»» Sender ID: Elena Voigt
»»» Recipient ID: 53rd Athena Research Squadron
Dear Miss Corvin,
I am glad to become acquainted with you, Miss Corvin. The purpose of the 53rd sounds like exactly what the Forlorn Hope is currently looking for: scientific expertise. I don't believe a more secure channel is necessary, as we have already made provisions against anybody trying to listen in on this. Consider our encryption level to be fairly up to date.
First of all, in order to clear away any kind of worries coming from the higher authorities inside the Republic, I want to make it clear that the station we are talking about will not be located in space relevant for the Republic's interest. It will serve as an outpost for the Forlorn Hope, a hub from which our operations inside Liberty will be started out in the future if everything goes smoothly. Involved authorities have already been spoken to, therefore you don't need to have any concerns about the legality of these plans.
I hope that could clear out some of your doubts. Now to what we would require from you. Since the station is still on a long way to be finished, we basically have to construct it from the bottom. And because we want the base to operate as independently as in any way possible, we would like to forgo water supplies coming from other nearby installations and instead rely on more self-sustaining ways. Thus we were wondering if your squadron is expertised in methods on how to handle such kind of independent water collection. Ice Fields could prove to be one way to achieve this, I was thinking, however those are a rather far cry away from the station, which is the reason why we would prefer other ways.
I am curious what your thoughts about this topic are, and will await your reply eagerly.
Yours sincerely, Knight Captain Voigt
The Forlorn Hope
I understand the situation. It's good to hear the Forlorn Hope are extending their operations, since the growth of our allies can always lead to further prosperity for us as well.
Now, to the matters at hand... In the scope of autonomy for a space installation, the supply of water is indeed a conundrum to bear in mind, but there are ways to solve it. From the top of my head I can think of at least three viable options, all of which the Republic has worked with in the past, and one of them you already mentioned.
Solid-state H2O, found either in icy asteroid fields or in the ice-caps of larger celestial bodies, is easy enough to mine with the right tools, while the thawing and processing pose no difficulty either. Indeed, if no such source is found within reasonable distance of your installation's location, the time and resources spent to transport the water may render the endeavour inefficient.
The vapour-state variant is a bit trickier to handle, yet still a viable possibility, depending on the amounts required to sustain your installation. Should your station have a gas-giant in its vicinity, proper analysis should be conducted to determine whether H2O-containing clouds can be found. If the results are within the desired spectrum, unmanned drones can be deployed with the proper equipment to collect the water and bring it forth for refinement on-board the installation.
With the use of a large amount of water as a start, proper purification and recycling facilities can be installed, in order to re-use from fifty up to ninety-percent of the initial amount. Still, this solution relies on a steady, albeit less often made-use-of, supply of water, coming from either from other installations or a direct water source. I think this option should be the last to consider, but could also be used in conjunction with any of the above-mentioned operations, since it may possibly yield even better results this way.
If either of these options seem reasonable, the Republic can indeed help with their setup. Alternatively, there may be other solutions to the issue, however, those are still under research and under no guarantee to yield favourable results yet. That is not to say we could not aid each other by completing such research together, for both our benefits.
If you wish to inquire further into any of the above-mentioned, feel free to do so. In either case, I look forward to your reply.
Regards, Catherine Corvin. 53rd Research Squadron
Crayter Republic
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»»» Location: Glendalough Orbital
»»» Sender ID: Elena Voigt
»»» Recipient ID: 53rd Athena Research Squadron
Dear Miss Corvin,
I think we might have found a possibility on how to handle the water collection. While it would be a rather pedestrian method, I guess we can only regard it as the lesser evil.
Unfortunately, we do neither have a gas giant in near proximity of the station, making the second option you expressed even less viable than the first one. I would have liked to avoid any of these options if I am completely honest, but given the circumstances, I believe option one paired with three would rack up the best outcome. Let me tell you a little more.
There is indeed an ice field in the station's vicinity, approximately fifty clicks away. While the distance could be shorter, the reach could be far longer just as much, hence I am inclined to be optimistic and believe the situation could be much worse than this. The only problem I see in using said ice field as a source of water is that it contains various other resources, mostly frozen gases trapped inside the asteroids, which would have to be filtered out first. I however doubt that would present us with much of a problem. Am I right in assuming so?
What does your team warrant to start with setting up the tools for both extracting, filtering and recycling? If possible, we would prefer them being constructed at a different place and then transported to the installation in one go. The less traffic hints at the exact location of the station, the better, if you understand what I mean.
Yours sincerely, Knight Captain Voigt
The Forlorn Hope
Apologies for the delayed response. A recent drop in manpower due to the Gallic advance has brought about increased difficulty in our work.
Now, referring to the issues you pointed out - yes, the refining process can be easily taken care of with the proper equipment. In terms of setup, mining tools are not an issue. Our associates from the Conveyor Minerals Inc. have already agreed to start preparing the machinery as soon as we give them a green light. The filtering and recycling factories, on the other hand, will be tricky to handle. Their volume, first of all, is a problem that will render the transportation of a finite product impossible. However, I believe there is a solution to this dilemma, which also keeps in mind the required discretion surrounding your facility.
Under the assumption that your station is not yet complete, or even if so it could still receive module upgrades, we could arrange for smaller sections of the factories to be transported all at once, after which they would be coupled together and integrated in the station's hull. This would offer the operation a decent enough speed, I'd say, to avoid any unwanted attention. Either way, I think it would be best if we met face-to-face to discuss the remaining details, as well as set the entire thing in motion. This, of course, would also include what the Republic has to gain from this endeavour.
Should you agree with me, please suggest a time and place.
Regards, Catherine Corvin. 53rd Research Squadron
Crayter Republic
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»»» Location: Glendalough Orbital
»»» Sender ID: Elena Voigt
»»» Recipient ID: Crayter Republic
Dear Miss Corvin,
You are right in the assumption that the base is not yet completed. To be frank, it actually is not anywhere near completion currently, which offers us the unique chance to build up a station from scratch, so to say, with any sort of modular upgrades available on the market. I am glad to hear that you think your Squadron can cover all the needs I have mentioned, while keeping up a necessary portion of discretion.
Indeed a meeting under four eyes would prove to be the most effective to straighten out the last remaining questions. I will leave the question of date, time and location to you. Then we can discuss the remaining issues, and also what the Republic can expect as a gesture of gratitude from our side.
Until then.
Yours sincerely, Knight Captain Voigt
The Forlorn Hope