Talk:Avery Quinn/@comment-1.41.230.6-20170822101513/@comment-2601:602:C900:6812:ECF9:52F5:4C43:1030-20170914114430

For the first few messages, he's towards the edge of the system and is several days away, making long range communication presumably difficult, if not impossible, from an emergency vessel's small radio (or communications relay). On his way, Avery seems to be addressing the Aurora specifically, implying that perhaps the only 2-way communication system for responding is on the Aurora. Avery doesn't seem to expect a response after he learns that they've crashed, further supporting that the only feasible way to respond is on the Aurora.

Aside from this, it doesn't seem like communication would normally be needed to inform a vessel that it's unsafe to land on a planet, as the crew of the Aurora tried to land and were unaware of any apparent danger. This implies that most planets/moons are presumed safe to land on by Alterra/Humans after scanning for threats from afar, planet 4546B just happened to be a rare exception.

Besides logic and physics, it's generally easier to ignore some ideas when creating a game (such as a communications room accessible by the player on the Aurora, or blueprints for building a more powerful communications relay capable of sending a message far enough to reach orbiting ships or further), as these ideas can further complicate the game/story. In this case, they are being ignored as they would interfere with the main story as Unknown Worlds Entertainment would like it to be told: https://imgur.com/a/YNOTt

As for the other lifepods being able to send messages, remember that they are less than a kilometer or two from Lifepod 5 and are sending open distress signals to whatever radio may be in range and whoever may be listening. Avery doesn't respond to messages sent by any of the Lifepods, only the Aurora's distress signal and scanned crash debris. This suggests that he either isn't receiving such messages, or is for whatever reason ignoring them.