• PM_ME_VINTAGE_30S [he/him]
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    818 hours ago

    I mean…a steam engine is a heat engine that uses steam to transfer heat. So you can make a steam engine by getting basically anything “really hot” and running steam through it. This is the working principle behind solar thermal power plants (but not solar panels!). I.e., you don’t necessarily need coal or even a fossil fuel to build a steam engine.

    • @JayDee@lemmy.world
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      314 hours ago

      Yes, but the whole aesthetic of steam punk is fantastical machines that operate on Victorian-era technology, which would be coal-fire steam engines.

    • @cuchilloc@lemmy.world
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      418 hours ago

      But if you put mirrors or magnifying glass as the heat source you lean too much towards solarpunk :)