this post was submitted on 14 Jan 2025
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[–] Honytawk@lemmy.zip 56 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Wouldn't technically nuclear power also be considered Steampunk?

Meaning there is no difference between Steampunk and Atompunk?

[–] djsoren19@yiffit.net 80 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Nah, key difference is that in atompunk, the energy is typically converted into electricity.

A big part of steampunk is the pipes moving steam to the contraptions, compared to wires moving electricity.

[–] Malgas@beehaw.org 5 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Hmm. Suppose you were building a nuclear locomotive. (Setting aside, for the moment, whether this is a good idea.) Would nuke→turbine→electricity→motor be more efficient than just using the rotation of the turbine to move the train?

It can't be, right?

[–] Revan343@lemmy.ca 13 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Diesel engine > generator > motor is frequently used for trains nowadays. Transmissions can be super inefficient, especially with discrete gear ratios

This is only true for locomotives really. Diesel Multiple Units (DMUs) often use hydraulic transmissions. Here's an example railcar: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V/Line_VLocity

It's possible that controlling the rotation would be significantly more difficult without the extra conversion.

[–] Quetzalcutlass@lemmy.world 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

That raises the question: are the Voyager probes (or anything with an RTG) considered Atompunk, or do they need random bits of sheet metal welded on to meet the aesthetic first?

[–] megopie@lemmy.blahaj.zone 11 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I remember playing flash game years ago that was about WW1 dog fights in nuclear powered steam biplanes.

[–] brown567@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I loved that game! The sequel was pretty good too, if I'm thinking of the same one

[–] lemonmelon@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Are we talking about Steambirds?

[–] brown567@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

That's the one I was thinking about! 😃

I couldn't remember the name XD

[–] xspurnx@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 points 1 year ago

I am so checking that out!