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Offline Altona

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City News
« on: June 15, 2021, 10:57:12 AM »

Witan interviews with candidates for Monarch continue---Funeral For King Gottschalk will be on Friday---King's Heavy Cavalry to escort body to Kaiserplaza



END OF FOSSIL FUEL RELIANCE

With the first of a planned network of nuclear power stations to be "Turned on" this Friday it marks the time when the Kingdom's energy production will not be provided by fossil fuels. Currently the nation gains its electric from the coal powered Kemp Forest network of power stations however with the spectre of fossil fuels becoming harder to obtain in the long term a decision was made in the 1990's to begin moving towards more sustainable projects. The Franz Plateau Power Station will go live on Friday and will produce enough power to cover the vast majority of the Northern part of the city. In total around six other reactors are due online over the next four years. The nuclear power stations will also be supplemented by wind turbines built out in the remote eastern part of the nation close to the border with Lakhozvia.

The hope is that by the end of 2025 the nation will be able to generate all its electricity by non fussil fuels means. It is also hoped that this will leave the nation with a surplus of energy which could in theory at least be connected to the Lakhzovian or Eskdale power grids and sold to help supplement the cost of power within Altona. 


Offline Altona

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Re: City News
« Reply #1 on: June 20, 2021, 09:48:44 PM »

Navy to test new missile on Monday---Duke Hans Muller to sell family estate amid bankruptcy---Altona "too small" for Mundus Games Bid---Beach Art Festival gets headline superstar



KING'S FUNERAL GOES ACCORDING TO PLAN

The funeral of King Gottschalk went ahead on Friday and went as smoothly as could be expected. The King died on the 1st June 2021 after battling liver disease for several months. The funeral procession left Kaiserplaza and made its way through several districts of the city before reaching the Temple of Sigyn. There the King's body was placed on a ceremonial pyre by members of the King's Heavy Cavalry. Prayers were said by the Wildhüter as members of the family placed items on the pyre to accompany the King. King Gottschalk's widow, Queen Agatha, placed leather saddlebags on the fire while his two sons placed a bow and a spear, Princess Constance placed a saddle on the fire. It is believed by the faithful that for the next seven days the spirit of King Gottschalk will be hunted by the Goddess Sigyn, should the King's spirit escape her then he will be permitted into paradise. The widowed Queen asked for the nation to pray for the spirit of her husband to remain uncaptured. Following the ceremony the Queen handed both her own and her late husbands crown into the keeping of the commander of the King's Heavy Cavalry. This marks the beginning of the process to elect the new monarch.

Over the next five days the members of the military who are serving by choice are casting their votes for which of Gottschalk's three children will succeed him. Should the vote be tied then it will fall to General Viktor Bertram to cast the determining vote. Until that time General Bertram and his men will guard the two crowns which will be on display to the public who visit Kaiserplaza. On Saturday the 26th of June the Witan's youngest sitting member will announce the election result and then Queen Agatha will crown the successor, from that point on she will assume the title of The Royal Lady.

Offline Altona

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Re: City News
« Reply #2 on: June 26, 2021, 09:18:45 PM »

Missile test "semi effective"---East Moreland's R.E.M close out Beach Art Festival---Sobendieken SC seal $35million deal for young striker---Franz Plateau Power Station reaches 10% capacity


LONG LIVE KING RUTGER

Voting has now closed for the position of monarch of Altona. The voting was between the three children of the recently deceased King Gottschalk and as tradition dictates only those who have served in the military under voluntary terms were permitted to vote. With the final results collected and verified by the Witan it was announced by General Bertram, the commanding officer of the monarchs bodyguard, the King's Heavy Cavalry, that the youngest son and middle child of King Gottschalk was the winner. General Bertram officially announced the results from the steps of the Witan's building in Kaiserplatz.

Prince Rutger earned just over 40% of the vote and will be coronated next weekend. During the same ceremony his wife will be crowned Queen. Additionally his siblings Prince Lukas and Princess Constance will be expected to swear public oaths of loyalty to their brother in his new position as King. The 38 year old was very vocal in his televised interviews with the Witan in pushing for the Kingdom to take a larger part in regional politics and promoting closer ties with neighbours in the region. It is yet unknown whether the new King will immediately begin processes to join the various organisations he discussed such as MICA and the Council of Illumic Nations.

Traditionally any siblings who have been defeated in an election are assigned positions within the new monarchs administration. As of yet only Prince Lukas has spoken to the press about his future. Speaking from his home in The Hunting Palace Prince Lukas has stated. "I am naturally saddened that I have not been elected King. I believed I was a strong choice but I also believe my brother and sister could be equally as strong. I have spoken with my brother to pass on my congratulations and best wishes. During our conversation I have stated that I wished to retain my position as a commissioned officer within the Parachute Regiment. I am grateful that he has granted my request with a slight provision that I undertake a few special duties on his behalf. These will be confirmed in the coming days as my new King see's fit. Regardless of who you voted for or wished to win it is now vital we show support to the newly elected King as he leads us towards the future. Long Live King Rutger."

« Last Edit: September 04, 2021, 09:25:08 PM by Altona »

Offline Altona

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Re: City News
« Reply #3 on: February 10, 2022, 03:57:34 PM »

King Rutger to support East Moreland winter games bid - Baumstadt project unveiled to public - Two Wildhüter arrested for "immorality"


AES BURN PLASMA

Altonan Electrical Syndicate (AES), the nations leading developer of nuclear energy, has today confirmed that it has achieved a key milestone in creating nuclear fusion. The process of nuclear fusion would, if successful, produce an endless supply of clean energy could produce four million times more energy than a chemical reaction such as the burning of coal, oil or gas and four times as much as nuclear fission reactions. As such AES have been experimenting with technology for several decades in an attempt to create the reaction that would effectively allow the process to replace all other forms of power station. Currently the process can be achieved but requires a huge amount of external energy to create, the aim is of course to create a reaction that would produce more energy than needed to start it and would be self sustaining. For this to be achieved a key milestone is a process known as "Burning Plasma" which is where the output exceeds the input of energy. THis was achieved today by AES at their test facility of Hereven when for a split second the process was achieved. Speaking of the test Professor Thibaun who runs the facility said "Experiments over decades have produced fusion reactions using large amounts of 'external' heating to get the plasma hot - now, for the first time, we have a system where the fusion itself is providing most of the heating. This is a key milestone on the way to even higher levels of fusion performance."

The technology however is still far from being usable as a means of energy production as Professor Thibaun explained. "Even when burning plasma is achieved, energy is still lost from the process. But this is one of the last remaining milestones before AES's bigger goal of "ignition" and self-sustaining energy production. The biggest obstacle is managing this on a scale where the reaction once began can be self sustaining as at present to control it the size of the initial set up is too small to be continuous."

AES have begun promoting their work in nuclear energy globally having secured contracts with Lijiang and interest from several other countries. Professor Thibaun said, "It is our dream to make AES the go to for clean energy. We have made great strides in promoting green nuclear energy and if we can achieve true fusion then we will be I believe the global leader in all energy production. Currently I believe we are about 70% the way towards creating ignition.


Offline Altona

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Re: City News
« Reply #4 on: March 29, 2022, 10:24:58 AM »

MICA news expected soon---Lijiang powerplat construction "going well"---Rutger to visit Hassfurt in coming weeks.



NUCLEAR MERCHANT SHIP BEGINS CONSTRUCTION

The MV Atom has begun construction in Arcaibh and will be among one of the first nuclear powered merchant ships to enter regular service. The vessel is being constructed by respected ship builders in the Celtic nation and a team from the Altonan Electrical Syndicate (AES) will travel there to complete the installation of a small small molten salt reactor which will provide the energy to power the ship. The move is the first partnership between the two parties and it is hoped will mark the beginning of a long term relationship. "We have been considering this move for a while." The AES spokesman stated, "We however were looking for a party with excellent reputations for ship manufacture and we saw an opportunity with Arcaibh. We hope to eventually see a large fleet of nuclear powered civilian vessels, the worth of military ones has long been established but as the world tries to ween itself off oil alternatives need to be sought. The recent oil spill will we hope be the thing of the past if we can complete this successfully. Naturally around the world people may be wary of safety but in many years of military nuclear shipping we have seen no incidents of the propulsion systems causing environmental damage."

One obstacle may be the MAEA which the AES spokesman recognised. "We may have to look at almost a system of two fleets, one flagged in a MAEA nation and one in the non-MAEA nations. We would have to see what stance nations we hope will become firm trading partners such as East Moreland would take on a non-MAEA flagged vessel entering their nation." It is suspected that there is nothing in the MAEA that would stop a nuclear powered vessel stopping in a MAEA nation even if flagged from a non-member as most maritime laws that already exist would cover the necessary inspections etc. This however is something that would need to be tested in reality.

Prince Lukas is expected to act as a kind of royal liaison on the construction project which he hailed as a "positive step towards a time when oil spills like those near Dauntel are a thing of the past. Even the most standard ship operations see large amounts of engine oil leak into the bilge and from there into the ocean. By removing a traditional engine that guzzles oil based fuels we can ensure this is cut and thus be better for the environment. One day I believe that majority of merchant shipping could be powered by small nuclear reactors and it is great to see AES at the forefront of this."

It is also understood that AES are holding talks with several other nations regarding "unrelated but complimentary" projects however the company would not reveal whether this was the case or who the nations involved are.

Offline Altona

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Re: City News
« Reply #5 on: April 09, 2022, 08:32:46 PM »

King says MICA announcement close----Hassfurt visit has hit "unforeseen delays"---- Altona rugby team unlikely to qualify for world cup----



SHRIMP INSPIRES NUCLEAR FUTURE

A team of scientists at the Illumic Shores Technological Institute (ISTI) have today announced that they have taken a step towards a unique method designed to achieve nuclear fusion. It is hoped that by achieving nuclear fusion low cost, clean energy could be produced with very little waste produced. Until now the Altonan Electrical Syndicate (AES) has lead the way in Altona in the race for nuclear fusion however the ISTI team believe they may soon close the gap and with a far less technologically demanding method.

Professor Klaus Ragner has been leading a team that today demonstrated a key idea they believe is an important first step, their method lacks the lasers and magnets used in other ongoing projects. The Professor explained how it was the pistol shrimp that gave them the idea. "The pistol shrimp has amazingly strong claws, it is estimated that a single strike from the animal creates a temperature so high it vapourises water and creates pressure bubbles where the water literally disappears.  As the shockwaves from the strike takes place it creates a huge ripple where these voids hit each other creating incredible pressure. If we could harness a similar effect we could force the process of fusion."

In front of a panel of the nations leading experts on nuclear energy the ISTI team demonstrated their technique. A target containing a small amount of fuel is dropped into a chamber which contains a liquid lithium network. A railgun design fires a mircopellet at close to 19 times the speed of sound into the target which then explodes creating a huge shockwave similar to that of the pistol shrimp strike. The pressure waves it creates have been recorded travelling at around Mach 204 making them for a brief moment the fastest object on Mundus. This reaction is then harnessed by a heat exchanger which  transfers the heat to water, generating steam that turns a turbine and produces electricity in the final commercial reactor design. Each target struck would produce an estimated 6.2 megawatt-hours of electricity, enough to power an average home for two years. Professor Ragner said, "If our estimates are correct then we could produce electricity at US$50/MWh which is currently the same price it costs to produce solar or wind power. This is obviously a very early-stage demonstration, and as such only about 50 such neutrons were produced but this matching the predicted yield. I believe we've got to the point of achieving fusion in record time and we've spent less than $59 million to get there, where the most conservative budget for the other projects sits at around $20 billion."

King Rutger has praised the project stating that he is "Proud of the scientists and technicians who are working hard to make us a pioneer in a field that is vital for mankind if we are to cut carbon creation to the bone."

Offline Altona

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Re: City News
« Reply #6 on: May 22, 2022, 06:17:23 PM »

Lijiang nuclear construction going on schedule---King "hesitant" on Awhaele MICA admission---"Mega resort" Plan being considered



MV ATOM "GOING WELL" SAYS

AES' first nuclear powered merchant ship the MV Atom is progressing well according to a spokesman. The ship is being built in Arcaibh with its power systems being made by Altona's premier nuclear power supplier. AES hope that if the ship is successful it could be the first of several in a fleet of nuclear powered craft. It is also the first partnership between AES and the Arcaibh shipwrights which it is hoped will lead to a much wider partnership. The ship is intended to join the Altonan merchant fleet for runs across Mundus. The crew are currently being trained by AES in nuclear safety alongside staff from Lijiang who will be operating that nations first nuclear power station. 

Offline Altona

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Re: City News
« Reply #7 on: September 16, 2022, 08:43:14 PM »




ALTONAN NUCLEAR SECURITY GETS "A MINUS" REPORT CARD

Professor Jozef Thibaun, Head of the AES, has today announced that the company have over the last few months been undertaking a variety of exercises to assess the quality of the companies nuclear security. Professor Thibaun was able to obtain the service of East Moreland's Red Legion as an aggressor. While the Professor said a confidentiality agreement meant that he could not fully disclose what actions had been taken he did explain some of the results. "Over the past month there have been several attempts made by Red Legion to access both physically and in a cyber capacity our facilities around the world. The aim was to see if we could withstand what in their view would be a comparable terrorist attack. Of course it should be said had an elite military force with the backing of a nation like East Moreland utilised all their resources then we would have been unable to do much. On 16 occasions attempts were made to infiltrate facilities and while I'd like to say outer security was sufficient on 10 occasions the very outer reaches of our cordons was exposed. This just emphasises why we have so many layers and defence in depth. There were a total of 12 attempts to breach cyber defences and only once was a minor system exposed and that was not connected to the actual running of the plant. I asked the Red Legion officers assigned to this task for a report in terms of a grade and we have been awarded an A Minus, which while not perfect should reassure anyone considering investment or partnerships with AES that there is extremely little to fear. We have proved time and again that our technology is safe and now we have been able to prove that as a company we are a safe partner in terms of ensuring nothing happens at our plants."

The news of AES' positive safety review comes as the Nemphis site in Clysperis come under physical attack. 

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Re: City News
« Reply #8 on: April 14, 2023, 02:51:08 PM »




REACTORS TO GET EVEN SMALLER

Illumic Shores Technological Institute (ISTI) have today announced that they intend to begin testing of "micro-reactors". The aim of the project is to be able to produce a nuclear reactor that could, if successful, fit into the back of a lorry trailer. If successful they would produce a series of reactors with an output between 0.5-50Mw and be portable by sea or road. The idea is to produce a series of exportable reactors for markets that do not currently have the ability to have reactors in remote areas. One barrier to overcome however will be the management of the facilities but according to Professor Klaus Ragner that will be "overcome with the use of selecting systems of cooling that require minimal on site work and the use of remote monitoring and automation can keep the reactors safely working." The company have already been showing success with small modular reactors and have even produced a floating reactor which was destined for export prior to defaults in payment.

King Rutger has confirmed that $100million will be made available from central government funding towards the project. One of the first test areas is on the north coast where ISTI intend to not just set up a system of test reactors but also intend to utilise the energy produced into a hydrogen electrolysis. The production of large scale hydrogen is a long standing aim of the government as it seeks to try and become market leaders in both nuclear energy production and hydrogen fuels. The government hope to be able to utilise hydrogen in the long term as a source of automotive fuel.