"Elite Dangerous" the video game has a whole bunch of asteroid mining in it.
One of the things you can outfit your ship with are "prospecting
limpets", which do some scanning of a rock and tell you what's in it.
There's also "collector limpets" - when you blast the asteroid with
your mining laser, they target useful chunks, grab them, and bring
them to your cargo bay

On Mon, Sep 21, 2020 at 10:09 PM <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> That's the one.
>
> I think the idea of an autonomous asteroid sampler is an interesting one.
>
> Build something under 20 tons with some decent thrust and a fairly long duration. Leave a couple of tons for a cargo ramp and some remote operated prospector bots. Have a bit of AI on the prospecting ship (no LS required) to fly to a rock in the belt, scan (TL-10 likely means no densitometer) then land (like the NEAR probe did on the comet) and have the prospector bots go out, collects samples at multiple places and bring them back.
>
> Then head to the next rock and the next. When your cargo capacity is full or fuel is a concern, head back to base to turn in samples. The base could be a fixed hab or station or it could be something like a 400 or 500 ton HQ vessel that can jump out to the belt, has some human crew, and has a minerological analysis unit aboard. It could carry 3 to 5 of these 20 dTon survey launches. Each one might hit multiple rocks and then return to HQ. HQ will flag the key findings into their database and make claims (or make the reports available for sale for those who might want to stake a claim).
>
> That'd be an efficient way to triage the belts.
>
> On Mon, Sep 21, 2020 at 7:17 PM Thomas RUX <xxxxxx@comcast.net> wrote:
>>
>> Hi kaladorn,
>>
>> DGP 871 MT 101 Vehicles #67 "TL10 TIAMAT MINING CRAWLER The Tiamat mining vessel is a self-contained colony for 50 people and can stay undersea for three to six months at a time. The colony's depth capability is 10 km...."
>>
>> The vehicle has a displacement of 500 kl.
>>
>> Tom Rux
>>
>> On 09/21/2020 3:09 PM xxxxxx@gmail.com wrote:
>>
>>
>> I seem to recall MT's 101 Vehicles had a Tiamat which was some sort of massive mining platform (tracked?). However, it was not autonomous, but that could be workable.
>>
>> On Mon, Sep 21, 2020 at 3:04 PM < xxxxxx@quibell.org.uk> wrote:
>>
>> Passing off pinpoints and energy scans is standard stuff in combat, if one of you has it then all of you have it.
>>
>>
>>
>> So the small launch would effectively have the Scout’s sensors.
>>
>>
>>
>> I was thinking of putting laser on it along with a couple of robot arms for a prospecting launch, and I was also thinking about doing an autonomous mining launch. I was also thinking about an autonomous land mining vehicle that goes drilling for whatever the geologists think is in the rocks. The former has been done (although maybe not @ TL9/10) the latter I don’t believe has …
>>
>>
>>
>> Best regards,
>>
>>
>>
>> Ewan
>>
>>
>>
>> From: xxxxxx@simplelists.com <xxxxxx@simplelists.com> On Behalf Of xxxxxx@gmail.com
>> Sent: 21 September 2020 13:45
>> To: The Traveller Mailing List <xxxxxx@simplelists.com>
>> Subject: Re: [TML] TL 9 Longsa Class 4 ton Small Launch
>>
>>
>>
>> Further to Jeffrey's thought:
>>
>> If you have this as a gig/auxiliary of a spaceship like a type S and you have even some rudimentary remote control/data feeds, you can have radar on your small craft and if your scout ship has a decent EMS array, you can probably remotely pickup the data via comms for quite a distance. Not as nice as having EMS onboard, but useful for jaunts with a cheaper base cost. Throw on a chameleon coating on the hull or a chameleon tarp that can be put over it, such a gig could let Scouts land on some primitive planets and then conceal the little gig (smaller than the Type-S) and do some planetary scouting. It could also be useful for getting close to, or onto, asteroids for mineral assays for the Belter version of the Scout (or a larger 150 or 200 ton Belting ship).
>>
>>
>>
>> TomB
>>
>>
>>
>> On Mon, Sep 21, 2020 at 8:23 AM Jeffrey Schwartz <xxxxxx@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> I like this, it looks like a useful thing
>>
>> Questions -
>> What's it look like if you pull the EMS active and just put in radar?
>> I'm wondering if the price drops enough that it'd be a meaningful
>> replacement for the air/raft in a Type-S?
>> What's it look like as a ground-to-orbit taxi for a populated world
>> where you can rely on traffic control?
>>
>> On Sat, Sep 19, 2020 at 6:45 PM <xxxxxx@quibell.org.uk> wrote:
>> >
>> > Robert Dean did a 4 tone mini launch @ TL15 which I came across (again) the other day, and such a craft would work well in one of the systems in MTU whose primary is an asteroid belt. However MTU is TL10, and the system in question is TL9 upgrading to TL10 so I took the idea and produced the following:
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Longsa Class Small Launch
>> >
>> > Designed by Ewan Quibell 2020-09-19
>> >
>> > Updated 2020-09-19
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > CraftID:
>> >
>> > Launch, Type QL, TL9, Cr5,067,475
>> >
>> > Hull:
>> >
>> > 4/6, Disp=4, Config=4USL, Armour=40D,
>> >
>> > Unloaded=84.605 tons, Loaded=96.721 tons
>> >
>> > Power:
>> >
>> > 1/2, Fusion=40Mw, Duration=10/30
>> >
>> > Loco:
>> >
>> > 1/2, Manoeuvre=1, Agility=2
>> >
>> > Comm:
>> >
>> > Radio=Far Orbit x2
>> >
>> > Sensors:
>> >
>> > AW Radar=FarOrbit, Radar Direction Finder, Radio Direction Finder, Light Amplification, Radiation Sensor=V Distant, Magnetic Sensor=V Distant, Headlight x2
>> >
>> > ActObjScan=Rout, ActObjPin=Rout, PasEngScan=Diff
>> >
>> > Off:
>> >
>> > Hardpoints=1
>> >
>> > Def:
>> >
>> > DefDM=+4
>> >
>> > Control:
>> >
>> > Computer=0/bis x3, Special=HeadsUp display,
>> >
>> > Environ=basic env, basic ls, extend ls, Airlock
>> >
>> > Accom:
>> >
>> > Crew=2 (Pilot=1, Commander=1) Seats=adequate x8
>> >
>> > Other:
>> >
>> > Cargo=4.915 kliters, Fuel=7.2 kliters ObjSize=Small
>> >
>> > EmLevel=Faint
>> >
>> > Comment:
>> >
>> > Construction Time=24 weeks single, 20 weeks multiple
>> >
>> > Excess Power=34.03Mw
>> >
>> > Cost in Quantity=Cr4,053,979
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > The Longsa class small launch is a design by Langria Shipyards of Boogerian that fits into a standard 4 ton vehicle bay, such as the vehicle bays usually specified in Boogerian 50 ton space habitats, or the Sanchomi Class Scout where it can be carried as an auxiliary craft. While no longer produced there are thousands of these vessels throughout the Boogerian system.
>> >
>> >                 Intended as relatively low-cost space travel it allows the residents of Boogerian to situate their habitats almost anywhere in system and still be able to commute to work or school if needed. It has a standard modular frame fitting so can be carried by a modular ship or boat as needed, as well as connect to standard space habitat to be able to provide propulsion to the habitat as may be needed.
>> >
>> >                 The main cost of the launch is the powerplant which at TL9 is the smallest that can built that over powers the craft considerably and provides it’s agility. Skilful engineers have been able to regulate the power supply into providing only the needed electricity for the launch that effectively extends the duration to 67 days, and reduces the launches’ agility to 0.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Best regards,
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Ewan
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> >
>> > For the fallen in the cause of the free:
>> >
>> > "When I go home I will tell of them and say,
>> >
>> > For our tomorrow, They gave their today."
>> >
>> >  My spelling is entirerly due to dyslexia, typos, and poetic license
>> >
>> >
>> >
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