NationStates Jolt Archive

How old (in days) does a country need to be to have a space program and not be godmodding?

Well, I started my space program at around 170million people.

Well you could start as a space nation as I did. Some big power gave me a loan even so I could get a buisness gonig!

I need the minimum amount of population or time needed to have a fully-functioning space program and not be godmodding.

Whatever your budget allows?

Oh....

That means I can satart right now?

If you want your people to starve and to have no military whatsoever... sure...

For whatever its worth I dont even have one yet.

I waited about a full RL month if not more before i made any jump into space. And then as now i am rather low tech, i'm just slightly better than the space shuttle..

I think I have enough money from my other countries to start up a space program... time to launch a rocket!

Harmona Mining Inc. is now giving Harmona all their extra profits.

*money wired*

Thanks for the money Harmona Mining Inc.

Now lets start up this space program!

*money received*

It all depends, Crookfur took it's first small steps into space as part of the GPSS initiative but then appart from a few minor odds and ends such as beginning the construction of the foundations of a launch facility on our equatorial trade island. We then kind of didn't do much until the Sapce program issue came up where our first main sattelites and rockets were sponsored by soft drinks manufacturers and then we developed from thier for a fully intgrated sattelite program.

Harmona, I'm starting a Space Launch. Want to joint techologies? Better Hurry...

SPACE LAUNCH WILL START IN 20 Minutes

Japan has 127 million people and a small space program. It doesn't have reusable launch vehicles (shuttles) or manned pods (Mercury/Gemini/Apollo or equivilants), but it can launch small satelites into orbit.

There is also a contest going on right now in the US where the first commercial/private group to launch a human into space will win some amount of money.

In NS, there are also a lot of nations that will help you with a space program. Some (like TransCorp, a company of Wazzu) will sell you good quality launch vehicles for cheap. Others (usually older nations) will sponsor/fund your nation to develop a space program. Some others (usually young nations) are almost certainly willing to make a joint space program (this has happened a couple times in NS history...but it is a lot of work for you to get together). And there are some organizations that will help you get into space, like the International Space Station project (do a search) or any number of alliances.

If your going into space, here are my suggestions.

1: Take it slow. Lots of nations 1-3 months old have huge fleets of mighty ships...most of the older nations consider those ships cardboard. If you take it slow, you show your patient, an RP quality that will give you respect.

2: Be origional. Lots of people knock-off Star Wars/Trek/Babylon 5/Andromeda/whatever ship pictures and claim ubertech. Booo--ooring. Pick 1-3 technological areas to specialize in, preferably ones no one else in NS uses, and be creative. EOTED stands out because of its amazing and exclusive magnetic technologies. Menelmacar used to stand out because of it's then exclusive gravity technologies...but Menelmacar allowed "gravitics" to spread and that technology is not longer exclusive, it no longer marks Menelmacar as distinct.

3: RP everything. I don't mean create a store thread for super-cheap low quality goods. I mean charicter oriented RP (CO-RP). Make up charicters for a space agency, trade and diplomatic teams in your government, corporations, private space-bound groups...then send them to nations in space. If you roleplay well, you can get technology and help from any of the more advanced and well regarded nations in NS.

4: Stay away from "n00bs". Note thats "n00bs" (lamers with big egos), not newbies (people new to NS or the internet). These n00bs can easily be recognized by said huge fleets of giant uberpowerfull cardboard spacecraft, of selling like ships on the open market for extremely low prices, or of their inability to RP.

5: As always, have fun.

I hope you'll go the way of the good RPer here on NS, it is rare that we pick up new ones. Most people are too tempted to suddenly become the equal of any old nation. Bide your time, and don't fall to the dark side. :)

it also depends what you want out of a space program: do you merely want the ability to put modern tech space stuff into orbit and maybe luanhc a deep space probe or 2? or do you plan this as merely the beginning of a gradual shift into space RP.

You forgot to specify which age of technology are you on. Modern, Pre-Futuristic and Futuristic?