Per Aspera (Space Agency Plan Quest)

"So, assuming I have understood this correctly -" you said, flipping your notepage over. "- you are proposing to build and fly this Snapper-1 device at some point in the next two years?"

The lead scientist of the Space Nuclear Power Reactor team, a small Persian woman with thick glasses whose name was (unfortunately) escaping you for caffeine-deficiency reasons, nodded enthusiastically, her hair a tumbling wave of black curls that briefly obscured her face. "Yes, Director. If you will permit, that is. I believe this fits inside our remit from the Council, so there should be no political issues, and the technical issues will be dealt with by the time it is ready for launch."

That is a few more 'shoulds' than I'm really comfortable with, but I don't think she's wrong, either, you thought, sipping your mug. It was entirely too early in the morning for this conversation - you had just arrived and had been about to settle in for the morning paper - but you had to do your duty as Director and render some sort of decision…

[ ] [SNPR] Set a goal of launching Snapper-1 by 1958Q2.
[ ] [SNPR] Refuse to set Snapper-1 as a funding priority.
[ ] [SNPR] Defer the decision until a later date.

After the scientist left, you were finally able to enjoy your coffee and finish waking up - at least, that was the plan, until Korolev stepped in. "I apologize for bothering you this early, Penelope," and, indeed, he did look apologetic, though that didn't stop him from continuing on as you fought down an eye-twitch. "However, there is some question about how we will handle the Singapore launch site when it is finished. Will there be a Director there, as well?"

You set your coffee down - again - and sighed. "There probably should be something, yes. As we gather more launch sites, we will very likely need site Directors to handle each individual site. I don't think we need to settle on exactly how that will be decided or what the IEC will look like afterward right this minute, though."

"Oh, no, not this moment, there are not even launch pads there yet." Korolev said with a laugh. "But soon."

"Soon." you agreed.

"I should have waited to ask, I think, but I did not want to forget." he said, giving you a wry smile. "My memory has been a bit… eh, bad, lately. I will leave you to your routine." he said, and bowed out after you dismissed him.

You stood up and walked over to your door, turning the handle on the deadbolt and locking your door.

That's enough for eight in the morning. I'm going to get fussy if I'm not allowed to finish this cup before it gets cold.

Resources:

645R (+730R/turn + 5R/turn from Connections - 50R/turn from payroll/dice purchases - 40 from active Programs = +645/turn net)
100 Political Support
1 R-2 Gale
1 R-4 Dawn
2 Curiosity-class Satellite



Space Centers
Mogadishu (1 2-ton pad, 1 30-ton pad)
Singapore (4 500t pads (planned))

Scientific Advances

Scientific/Engineering Specific Field Bonuses

AERO - +19
AVIONICS - +10
CHEM - +18
CREW - +3
COMP - +13
MATSCI - +17
PHYS - +18
PROP - +14

IEC Leadership:

Director of the IEC:
Penelope Carter [The Director] - [+10 to Politics rolls, +2 Politics die, +5R/turn in funding from Connections, reroll 1 failed politics roll per turn]

Assistant Director of the IEC:
Sergei Korolev [The Engineer] - [+5 to Science and Engineering rolls (unless researching [HGOL][FUEL] projects, then it becomes a -15), +1 Science dice, +1 Engineering Dice. Request: Build and launch a 2nd Generation Orbital Rocket within 5 years. Demonstrate crewed orbital spaceflight within 5 years.]

Chief Scientist of the IEC:

Assistant Director of the Cosmonaut Assembly:

Cosmonauts: 7

Passive Effects
Rocket Reels - Adds a coinflip for 2 gained political support per quarter; gain an additional flip for every successful orbital rocket launch. [UPGRADED]

Nuclear Power Authorization - The World Council has been successfully convinced to support the IEC conducting peaceful, power-generating nuclear experiments. (Current WC approval status: Given, Apprehensive; Current public approval status: Apprehensive)

Demil Locker Access - Access granted to the world's stockpiles of military equipment in the process of being decommed. (Lower progress requirements for spaceplanes, space-gun experiments, etc.)

Research Support - You have a network of scientific institutions to whom you send a variety of data and perform experiments for. By putting a little extra pressure on those institutions, you can get some help for your internal purposes. (+3 to all Science and Engineering dice until 1957Q1)

Promises Made (Expires Q1 1957 unless otherwise stated):
Launch a Venus probe before 1960Q1. (+2 to Dnipro Aerospace Metallurgy Centre's bonus on completion) (Int(M-L)
Launch a probe to Mars by 1960Q1 (+2 to Long Beach Propulsion Research Complex's bonus on completion) (Int(D)))
Conduct Nuclear Power Plant Design Studies (FWW) (Does not expire as long as the dice is locked)
Deliver a Weather Observation Satellite covering :

• Asia (Int(M-L),Int(C))
• Europe. (Int(M-L)
• North America (Int(D))
• South America (Int(C))

Build a Launch Facility in Asia by 1957Q1. (Int(C))
Build a Launch Facility in Eastern Asia before 1957Q1 (Int(M-L))
Complete all stages of Tracking Facilities by 1957Q1 (CPAL)
Build the Sydney Microelectronics Research Centre by 1957Q1. (SDL)
Build 2 points of Industry or Infrastructure in North America (Int(M-L), Int(D))
Build 2 points of Industry or Infrastructure in industrialized regions (SDL)
Launch a Lunar Impactor before 1957Q3. (+2 to New Delhi Physics Institute bonus)
Complete Exploratory Propellant Research (Phase 3) by 1957Q1. (Int(D), UWF)
Conduct Transistor Computing Investigation in Mombasa by 1958Q1. (CPAL)

Operations (6 dice, +3 bonus) (1 type of Rocket may be built at a time)

Rockets

[ ] Construct an R-1 Beden - Standard Sounding rocket launches are now something of an old hat. Still perfectly useful, of course, and they're not actually that old, but the two stage rockets have stolen some of their thunder. (15R per dice, 3/35, costs 1 Build Capacity until complete)
-[ ] And launch it (free action for Sounding Rockets) (gains Scientific Data, launch experience, results to show the people funding you)

[ ] Construct an R-2 Gale - The IEC's engineers and scientists have come up with a moderately reliable stage separation system for multi-stage rockets. The Gale has seen active use for two years, now, and is turning into quite the reliable workhorse. (20R per dice, 19/45, costs 1 Build Capacity until complete)
-[ ] And launch it (free action for Sounding Rockets) (gains Scientific Data, launch experience, results to show the people funding you)

[ ] Construct an R-3 Snow - The Heavy Sounding Rocket, now known as the Snow, is ready for construction. It's a sizeable rocket, but thankfully you have a sizeable pad to launch it from. Unfortunately, it won't ever fit on a Stormchaser. (25R per dice, 7/80, costs 1 Build Capacity until complete)
-[ ] And launch it (free action for Sounding Rockets) (gains Scientific Data, launch experience, results to show the people funding you)

[] Construct an R-4 Dawn - The first Orbital-class rocket, the Dawn is capable of lifting 200 kilograms to low Earth orbit. It may be able to do more, in time, but for now that would suffice. It can only launch on the Heavy Sounding Pad or heavier, as yet unbuilt ones. (35R per dice, 97/120, costs 1 build capacity til complete) (2 Payload Mass capacity)
-[ ] And launch it (1 Operations dice; specify payload)
–[ ] Sounding payload (inert payload for testing)

[] Construct an R-4a Dawn - A refined version of the R-4, capable of carrying several times the payload to orbit and is even capable of launching small crewed capsules or interplanetary probes. (30R per dice, 0/100, costs 1 build capacity til complete) (12/4/2 Payload Mass capacity)
- [ ] Add additional solid boosters (2R per booster, max 6, +2 LEO Payload Mass per booster) [REQUIRES LARGER LAUNCH PAD] [REQUIRES STRAP-ON BOOSTERS]
--[ ] And launch it (1 Operations dice; specify payload)
---[ ] Sounding payload (inert payload for testing)

Note here: the 12/4/2 are the Low Earth Orbit (LEO) / Geostationary/synchronous Orbit / Beyond Earth Orbit payload masses. For every 3 LEO payload, gain 1 GEO/GSO payload. For every 6, gain 1 BEO payload.

[ ] Construct a Prototype Spaceplane -

Payloads

[ ] Construct a Payload
–[ ] Curiosity-class Satellite (20R) (1.5 Payload Mass) (lasts one quarter)
--[ ] Curiosity-B-class Satellite (25R) (2 Payload Mass) (2 quarter lifetime depending on mission)
--[ ] Curiosity-C-class Satellite (30R) (2 payload mass) (16 quarter lifetime)

Programs (0 slots available)

[ ] Activate Weather Observation Satellites (1 slot required) - Dedicates a portion of the Assembly Complex to the serial production of weather satellites and the rockets required to launch them, leading to savings from the assembly-line nature of the operation. By using specially-built observation satellites, the IEC can provide real- or near-real-time observation of weather phenomena across the globe. This has obvious benefits for forecasting and emergency alerting, and would be a valuable way of cementing the IEC as a permanent fixture of the Council. (40R/turn) (Delivers polar-orbiting satellites every turn starting 1956Q3 until required slots are filled, beginning with a satellite covering the Americas and East Asia, followed by one covering Europe, Africa, Australia) (Deactivates on completion, returning slot until satellites need replenishing) Active

[ ] Activate Sounding Rocket Programs (1 slot required) - Begins a more rigorous, regimented program of sounding rocket launches, opening the doors for more cooperation with universities across the world. (10R/turn) (+5PS/year) (removes Sounding Rockets from build queue)

Facilities (8 dice, +10 bonus)

(A maximum of 3 dice may be used on any project - representing 3 shifts of work.)

[ ] Build a new Space Center (Singapore) - Mogadishu was an excellent site (and it had all your stuff), but a growing space program needed to expand to new sites to service different orbits and different communities. Doing so was a major undertaking, of course, and would necessarily need a great investment.
(Phase 2 (33/600), begins construction, 1 500T pad available when complete)
(Phase 3 (0/600), continues construction, 3 500T pads available when complete)
(Phase 4 (0/500), local Assembly Complex completed, +2 Program slots)

[ ] Expand the Launch Complex - You have two launch pads (one of which has gone entirely unused, so far) but, soon enough, you expect to need additional pads to account for the maintenance and upgrades the existing ones will certainly need. Getting a head start on that need may be a good idea. (20R per die, 0/350, gain two 500t launch pads)

[ ] Build a Scientific Complex - While there are a significant number of people within the IEC who want to keep the Cooperative's footprint confined to Mogadishu - at least for now - there is definitely an argument to be made for building dedicated facilities in other locations to build up buy-in from the rest of the world by providing them something tangible in return. One of those ideas is for a dedicated Scientific Complex, dedicated to a particular discipline, much like the Soviet closed cities - just not closed. This has the potential to greatly increase your scientific output and your political sway at the same time. (25R per die, opens up new research possibilities, +1d5+5 bonus in the associated field, +1 Education for the region)
-[] Sydney Microelectronics Research Centre (AVIONICS) (133/450)

[ ] Build a Mission Control Center - As the IEC's operations continue to expands, it finds itself in need of additional control space dedicated to both new and ongoing missions. That control space will need significant computing capability, as well as dedicated communications links - both of which are power-hungry. The benefits, however, could be worth it. (25R per die, 133/250) (+3 to Operations) (+1 Program slot (runs repeatables in the background))

[ ] Tracking and Communication Station Construction (Phase 3) - The final stage of Tracking Stations rolls out tracking stations in between the poles and the equator, providing access to satellite communications (when that happens) and tracking for every region. (30R per die, 70/550)

[ ] Hypersonic Wind Tunnel Upgrade - Utilizing new jet technology, the IEC can upgrade its Mogadishu wind tunnel to support higher speed wind flows, improving the results from scale model testing. (2 turns, 20R, +1 to Wind Tunnel AERO bonus)

[ ] Arcjet Wind Tunnel - Utilizing what is, in effect, an argon-burning electric rocket nozzle, the high temperatures of re-entry can be simulated on the ground, enabling much more rapid testing of heat shield materials. This addition to the Wind Tunnel complex will be very beneficial to the IEC as a whole. (2 turns, 25R, +1 to Wind Tunnel MATSCI bonus)

[ ] Construction and Reconstruction Support - The IEC has a fairly sizeable and very skilled Facilities department that, if desired, could be of help in rebuilding the world's ruins and advancing the state of humankind besides. This can be done with or without a promise owed to someone, and will always be a good way of improving your relationships with the people you serve. (0/250) (can be done multiple times in parallel)
-[ ] Specify Region
--[ ] Electrification (25R per dice)
--[ ] Industry (30R per dice)
--[ ] Infrastructure (20R per dice)

Engineering (6 dice, +6 Bonus to All, +3 from Research Support (1956Q1)) (4/6 Locked)

[1 LOCKED] Human-rated Rocketry - Satellites would certainly be useful for many things that you didn't want to spend precious human time on, nor deal with the constraints involved in getting them back. But, should the need arise, it would be a good idea to develop a way to get a human into space, then orbit, and back, alive. (6/8 turns, 1 locked dice, 20R per turn)

[ ] Prototype Spaceplane - Your spaceplane enthusiasts returned to your office with another proposal, building off the back of the design studies they had undertaken through the winter of 1954. Their desire was to create a crewed 'space' plane that would be towed behind or carried underneath a carrier aircraft, be released, and activate a rocket engine that would take it up over the Karman line. It would have a multitude of sensors, of course, and would also need air supplies and likely a heated flight suit to keep the pilot alive and able to work. (0/300, 15R per dice)

[ ] Design/Redesign an Orbital Rocket - Now that our first orbital rocket has flown to space and delivered payloads, we can begin to look at what may be improved about it. We can also, if we wish, begin thinking about other, new designs. (15R) (4 turns to Design) (2 turns to Redesign) (Triggers subvote)
-[ ] Design
-[ ] Redesign (Rocket name here)

[ ] Lifting Body - Work with the Wind Tunnel and on the Spaceplane studies had revealed a new configuration for air- and spacecraft fuselage design - the concept of the lifting body, where the wing area was minimized to reduce drag at high speeds, with the body itself providing the lifting force used. While not terribly useful for aircraft, it was potentially very useful for spacecraft design. (10R per die, 30/150)

[1 LOCKED] Multi-Stage Designs - Through the use of additional stages, we can give rockets the capability to throw payloads further out into space - potentially even interplanetary distances. (15R per turn) (1/2 turns) (Enables the use of third stages and up for sending payloads to geostationary orbit and beyond at the cost of Payload Mass)

[1 LOCKED] Impactor Designs - One of the proposed methods of probing our neighboring planets and Moon is by, quite literally, hitting them with a sizeable weight going at incredible speed and seeing what we can learn from the resulting dust plume (in the case of the Moon) or following the instrumentation's readings as they transmit on their way to impact. Or both. (10R per turn, 1 engineering dice locked, 1/3 turns)

[ ] Lander Design Studies - The obvious next step after smacking a probe into the Moon is to land one softly on its face and observe it at ground level, taking measurements and performing experiments for as long as the power lasts. This will require additional study of long-duration fuel handling and in-space relights far from Earth. (4 turns, 15R per turn, 1 dice locked)

[1 LOCKED] Nuclear Power Plant Design Studies - Now that initial work had been completed verifying that, at the lab scale, nuclear energy could be used to generate power, now it was time to actually forward that knowledge into a practical, useful form. It would not be cheap, but, hopefully, it would be worth it. (6/8 turns, 1 locked dice, 25R per turn) (Unlocks 1st Generation Terrestrial Fission Power Plants for the world, leads to Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators, 2nd Generation Terrestrial Fission Plants, 1st Generation Space-rated Fission Plants)

[ ] Snapper-1 - The Space Nuclear Power Reactor, SNPR, currently better known to your scientists as Snapper, is a small sub-kilowatt output fission plant well-suited for deep-space probes. The basic model of the Snapper has a roughly two year design lifetime, but the deliverable model the teams are looking to provide will be designed for at least five, enabling long duration high-power missions to Jupiter and beyond. (2 turns, 25R per turn) (Enables 1st Generation Space-rated Fission Plants)

[ ] Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators - The full name of the device was quite a mouthful, but it shortened - helpfully - down to RTG. Differing from a reactor in a number of ways, an RTG was largely a passive, low-power, long-life device, utilizing the thermoelectric effect to convert the decay heat of radioactive material into electrical power and useful heat to keep instruments warm. (2 turns, 25R per turn) (Enables Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators)


[ ] Nuclear Engine for Rocket Vehicle Applications Studies - A side-effect of the nuclear power studies led to several of your researchers realizing that the heat a reactor produced could be harnessed for things other than turning a turbine. By passing propellant over a reactor's core housing you would cool the core and heat the propellant alike - and the propellant would be very hot indeed, making it an attractive candidate for being flung out the back of the spacecraft at extremely high speeds. (20R per die, 0/500, -30PS on completion UNLESS given WC authorization) (Unlocks 1st Generation Nuclear Thermal Propulsion for spacecraft)

(Projects that require locked dice can be unlocked at any time, but progress will not be made without a dice locked in.)

Science (5 dice, +6 Bonus to All, +3 from Research Support (1957Q1)) (1/5 Locked)

[ ] Exploratory Propellant Research (Phase 3) [CHEM] - A group of chemists attached to the IEC came to you with a proposal to conduct an exhaustive campaign characterizing just about as many propellants as they could come up with. While expensive, dangerous, and potentially deadly, the knowledge gained could also be invaluable for nailing down mixtures and ratios of fuels that could help the IEC achieve its objectives. (15R per dice, 29/250, unlocks fuel mixtures and further fuel development)

[ ] Conduct Supersonic Jet Research (Phase 3) [AERO] - Basic testing has been completed, and interesting phenomena observed when experimenting with the engines that have been built. More can be done, of course. (15R per die, requires a completed Hangar Complex and Runway to finish, can be started without, 147/640)

[ ] All-Sky Survey (Phase 1) [PHYS] - The Science Committee at the WCC put forward the proposal to perform an All-Sky Survey, mapping the entire night sky with telescopes across the world. The first such survey, the Carte du Ciel, had never actually finished, despite starting nearly three quarters of a century ago. With advancements in photography and optics, the science teams predict that they will be able to perform the task… in roughly a decade. First, though, you needed to wrangle observatories… (10R per die, 124/300) (+5 PS, ???)

[ ] Atomic-powered Ground Launch Concept Studies - The idea of in-space nuclear propulsion, brought down to Earth. This program would study the possibilities for using nuclear power to get from the surface to space, both directly and indirectly. (10R per die, 0/300, -5PS on start, and an additional -10 on completion)

[ ] Very Long Range Communications - In order to properly communicate with probes we send out into the solar system to explore our neighboring worlds, we will need to begin studying ways to communicate more efficiently at these incredible distances. (5R per turn, 1 Science dice locked, 3 turns)

[ ] Closed-Input Life Support Systems - We know from high-altitude flights during the Third Great War that systems can be designed to provide breathable air and a temperature-controlled environment for high-flying pilots. By taking that knowledge and acknowledging the lack of oxygen in space from which to replenish breathable air supplies, we can design a system capable of keeping a human alive for at least a short time (days) in space with no external inputs. (10R per dice, 126/200)

[1 LOCKED] Transistor Computing Investigations - After some pestering by Dr. Turing, a program to more fully investigate the possibilities related to transistor-based computing has been authorized. One part investigating how to best build one, one part trying to improve on that method, and one part trying to use them for things. He promised that it'd be worth it, and you believed him. (20R per turn, 1/6 turns)

(Projects that require locked dice can be unlocked at any time, but progress will not be made without a dice locked in.)

Politics & Management (5 dice, +10 bonus, reroll 1 failure per turn)

Political

[ ] Bothering Councilors - The year's budget is set, but next year's is very much not. You can influence investment priorities if you want to apply enough political pressure to the right people to convince them to fund, say, better roads out of Mogadishu… elementary and secondary schools in Africa… that kind of thing. (-10 PS, roll a quality dice to give options for influencing infrastructure funding, triggers subvote)

[ ] Propagandize for Nuclear Power - As the IEC has gained more and more knowledge on the subject of nuclear power, it's become apparent that if you want to put this knowledge to good use for humanity, you'll need to start working against the (justified) stigma nuclear as a whole has in order to realize its full potential. (-2PS per die) (312/???)


[ ] Propagandize for Space - Now that you've gotten your first orbital class rocket (and soon your first satellite), now is the best time to start touting the benefits of space exploration and access to space to the public. You'll need to find ways of engaging everyone in the idea, and there was no better time to start than now. (5R per die) (138/???)

Outreach

[ ] Visitor Complex - The Outreach Department has floated the idea of constructing a dedicated Visitor Complex from which future launches can be watched, and even televised. This would be located roughly nine kilometers away in the opposite direction of the line of flight leaving the space center. (0/300, 10R per dice, +1 Politics bonus, +??)

Personnel

[ ] Engineering Job Fair - (33/150, 5R per dice, -5R per turn on completion. Gain +1 Engineering dice)

[ ] Laboratory Talent Scouting - (0/150, 5R per dice, -5R per turn on completion. Gain +1 Science dice)

[ ] There is Power in a Union - The PAO says you should expand your physical footprint so more people can interact with the IEC. Preparations and initial expansions have already been made, but your facilities unions need more able bodies to do more with. (0/150, 5R per dice, -5R per turn and -5 PS on completion. Gain +1 Facilities dice.)

[ ] The Right Stuff - With work underway on several programs that would require the services of skilled and courageous pilots, you would soon need to begin finding them so they could be integrated into the IEC - and someday, they would become your first astronauts. (75/300, 5R per dice, gain astronaut candidates)