<div class="quoteheader"><div class="topslice_quote"><a href="https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=260005.msg12844429#msg12844429">Quote from: Cassandra LeMay on 16-12-2016, 15:16:12</a></div></div><blockquote class="bbc_standard_quote"><br/>The funny thing is (and this is also a reply to Sessha's post about space colonization) - the larger these ships get, the less realistic the whole concept of space colonization, as shown in those series, looks to me. The larger and more comfortable the colony ships become, the less need I see for them to embark on years, maybe decades of searching for a habitable planet. All you need is a resource-rich world you can mine. It doesn't have to be very hospitable, as long as people in spacesuits and mecha can operate there. Use it as a giant mine, put lots of space habitats in orbit around it, and you are golden. Who needs a habitable planet when you can build spaceships like this? After decades of space travel, half your colonists probably won't even <em>want</em> to live on a planet because they have never known anything but their colony ship, so just build more space habitats.<br/><br/>(The whole idea of having all those civilians around strikes me as rather questionable anyway. Why cart them around the galaxy for years, maybe decades, when you could just send well-armed military scout parties looking for habitable planets? It's a bit like Columbus setting out on his first journey with a dozen ship loaded with civilians in tow. Hardly a sensible idea.  ;))<br/></blockquote><div class="quotefooter"><div class="botslice_quote"></div></div><br/>For several reasons I can argue.<br/><br/>One, as Sess pointed out. People just can't live in ships indefinitely. The creature comforts allowing to ease the stress of space travel for extended periods of time. Remember, they'll be in these ships for YEARS. While Space Folding allow for very quick methods of travel, they are not instantaneous. Particularly since we find out, in Frontier, there are barriers to Space Folding. Faults as they call them that prevent ships from being able to fold, and thus have to travel through these sectors conventionally.<br/><br/>As for why the don't simply send Armed reconnaissance fleet out? Well, Actually they do. They're Pathfinder fleets led by<em> Macross class </em>Battle Fortresses. Yet, the Galaxy is a huge place, and their is so much unknown about it.<br/><br/>As for why they need a hospitable planet? Simple. That is the very foundation of the Galactic Seeding project. To ensure Humanity is never put into a position to be wiped out again. One of Global's greatest fears was being caught in another war that could wipe out the human race. So they wanted to get humans off the planet as quickly as possible to ensure their survival. Contrary to Robotech where the Canon said that Dolza only targeted the major human population centers. In Macross (According to some sources) only about 10% of the human race survived the Razing of Earth. So the humans were strongly encouraged to make babies, LOTS of babies. And with population growth, you need space. Space that is a luxury upon a space ship. Cause the more people you're carrying. the more food you need. the more water you need. the more energy you need. And even then you can simply get TOO big. They want the human race to be fruitful, and multiply, and the best way to do that is on a Hospitable Planet. Hell, in the extend-verse of Mac7. Humans were thriving even on inhospitable planets.<br/><br/>With the<em>New Macross Class</em>, and later<em>Island Cluster Class</em>, you have something else too. Ease of transferring infrastructure. With traditional colony ships. when you park the ship in orbit, or land on a planet, you usually have to move supplies, and infrastructure off the ship to establish the colony. With the<em>New Macross Class</em>, and<em>Island Cluster Class </em>you simply just land the ship, and expand from there. the City, and Government is already been established, and now you're just allowing people off the ship to pursue what they want. And if a sizable threat should appear, you can easily (relatively) pack up, and leave the planet. Or once the colony has been established, the Island Ships can take off once more and try to find a new planet to colonize.<br/><br/>As for Columbus, he wasn't looking to colonize. He was looking for an alternate shipping route to the East Indies for spices, and other valuables.