Orbital Mining Platforms - best way to mine Venus

[undercovergeek (OP)]

Mines are in place on Mars, Mercury, Luna, Io and Ceres, im waiting on the tugs to be built to take terraforming platforms to Luna and Mars

Im sure ive read that Venus is best mined with an orbital mining platform - is there any advice for a good OMP build?

[nuclearslurpee]

Mines are in place on Mars, Mercury, Luna, Io and Ceres, im waiting on the tugs to be built to take terraforming platforms to Luna and Mars

Im sure ive read that Venus is best mined with an orbital mining platform - is there any advice for a good OMP build?

You've read bald-faced lies. Venus cannot be orbitally mined, because it is too large. Orbital mining modules have a maximum body diameter which they can work on, which can be improved with tech but not to the size of a planet like Venus AFAIK.

The best solutions will be either automated mines or manual mines + Ark Modules to hold an orbital population. Either approach is probably pricey enough that it's not worth mining Venus unless there are some really good deposits there (millions of tons + multiple minerals + very high accessibilities).

[undercovergeek (OP)]

Mines are in place on Mars, Mercury, Luna, Io and Ceres, im waiting on the tugs to be built to take terraforming platforms to Luna and Mars

Im sure ive read that Venus is best mined with an orbital mining platform - is there any advice for a good OMP build?

 unless there are some really good deposits there (millions of tons + multiple minerals + very high accessibilities).

All those things!

So purely for the fun and role play - I build an ark module - is this something that I tow out to Venus? And once in orbit does it automatically send my little miners down to the planet to work in the mines?

[Black]

So purely for the fun and role play - I build an ark module - is this something that I tow out to Venus? And once in orbit does it automatically send my little miners down to the planet to work in the mines?

Ark Module is simply a component for ships or space stations (It is in Colonist Transport category in Class Design window and you have to research it first) that your population lives in, it does not have any industrial purpose. Build a space station with Ark Module components using your planetary industry (check No Armour checkbox in Class Design window when making the design) and use a tug to tow it to Venus. After the population is on Venus you will have to ship mines to start mining.

[nuclearslurpee]

And once in orbit does it automatically send my little miners down to the planet to work in the mines?

Yes. Ark Modules have been changed a bit in the recent versions, so they host a separate "orbital population" which is able to work the mines and factories on the surface just like a surface population.

You can read more about Ark Modules and how they work in the Steve dev post here.

[undercovergeek (OP)]

And once in orbit does it automatically send my little miners down to the planet to work in the mines?

Yes. Ark Modules have been changed a bit in the recent versions, so they host a separate "orbital population" which is able to work the mines and factories on the surface just like a surface population.

You can read more about Ark Modules and how they work in the Steve dev post here.

Just making sure after reading Steves post - will an ark module function without a surface population - can it just be placed in orbit to provide mining capabilities to a place like Venus, presumably i still need to ship mines to the planet

[Garfunkel]

The population is always on "the surface", game mechanics wise. The ark module provides a limited amount of CC=0 living space. But you have to ship colonists to Venus AFTER you've placed the Ark module station(s) in orbit. Then they can safely work manned mines. And don't worry, there's no longer any population growth in the Arks that would spill outside and suffer horrible deaths.

I forgot that Steve changed lot more than just the name.

[Steve Walmsley]

Just load the Ark with colonists before you move it.

[nuclearslurpee]

before my pixel engineers get to work - is there a strict ratio as to how effective mines are to automines?

They have the same efficiency per mine, but automines cost 2x as much to build in exchange for not requiring population. Of course, the cost of infrastructure to support population plus running a colony convoy back and forth makes up some of this difference in practice.

[undercovergeek (OP)]

before my pixel engineers get to work - is there a strict ratio as to how effective mines are to automines?

They have the same efficiency per mine, but automines cost 2x as much to build in exchange for not requiring population. Of course, the cost of infrastructure to support population plus running a colony convoy back and forth makes up some of this difference in practice.

i know its not the most cost effective but the Expanse fan in me wants to put an ark station above a planet - im thinking maybe a million colonists and 20 mines to begin with - left to its own devices where do the minerals collect? is it best to send a freighter to collect the mines or do i put a mass driver on the station or the planet?

[AlStar]

Minerals end up on the surface of the world they're mined from.

If you're mining within the Sol system, it makes a lot more sense to drop a mass driver per 5,000 tons of production on the planet - why waste the fuel shuttling minerals back and forth?