Ah okay, good point. The countdowns/damage for the systems do not start until the opening scene finishes but I didn't take into account the speed at which people might read it and how much time they may lose. I think that was likely because I wrote it myself and when playing I was just skipping through (oops).
There were a lot of bits I had to cut from the game due to time. My plan for the text had originally been for the timer to stop, the player to be able to control the speed, and for there to be visual queues for the player to progress to the next conversation piece. In the end I just ran out of time and connected what I could.
The conversation with Meredith controls all progression in the game - so communicating with her and choosing the right times to communicate with her (when you have raised your shields, repaired the engine to a high level, repaired the life support systems and eaten food). When you do that then any of the disaster events that occur (I think there are 4 in the game) which knock a lot of damage off all the systems can be easily managed.
Overall, the game can be completed by covering a minimum distance and completing all the conversations with Meredith. It's possible to complete the game in a distance of ~ 973 (units? who knows.... I forgot to specify)... but it can take much much more than that depending on how careful the player is being.
Thanks for the feedback and for playing the game. Really appreciate it.