Need Smaller Astronauts? Five Dubious SF Solutions to the Problem of Astronaut Mass

[james_davis_nicoll]

Should miniaturizing your astronauts fail, here are some other options to consider—especially if ethics aren't a major concern...

Need Smaller Astronauts? Five Dubious SF Solutions to the Problem of Astronaut Mass

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Isn't it "day" most of the time in space? In C. S. Lewis's "Out of the Silent Planet", it's tremendously sunny up there.

Does she go up in a pod full of the soil of her homeland? Is it O.K. dehydrated?

Robert Carnegie

[ba_munronoe]

It is something of an open question as to whether vampires _have_ to sleep during the daytime. The O.G., Bram Stoker's Dracula, could get around on cloudy days, although under those conditions he couldn't use his Vampire Powers. The dirt requirement? I dunno how much is needed, and in any case a lot of fictional vampires don't seem to follow that rule. As for the "burning up" business, just keep the windows closed? It's not like spaceships are guided by looking out the window.

[mikeda]

The day didn't even need to be cloudy. Sunlight did not injure Stoker's Dracula although his powers were reduced during the daytime (although he could still shapeshift at sunrise, sunset, and noon).

[bunsen_h]

"Sleep well?"
"Sleeping is not the problem. Waking up -- that is a problem. I've always had hard time getting up when it's dark outside."
"But in space it's always dark."
"I know, I know."
Sinclair and Ivanova, B5 episode "Signs and Portents"