Posted on 02/18/2010 3:22:11 PM PST by Para-Ord.45
Star Trek fans, prepare to be disappointed. Kirk, Spock and the rest of the crew would die within a second of the USS Enterprise approaching the speed of light.
The problem lies with Einstein's special theory of relativity. It transforms the thin wisp of hydrogen gas that permeates interstellar space into an intense radiation beam that would kill humans within seconds and destroy the spacecraft's electronic instruments.
(Excerpt) Read more at newscientist.com ...
Duh, they have navigational deflectors. And in fact, they have Bussard collectors to capture the interstellar hydrogen as fuel.
It was warp speed, if I’m not mistaken. Engage!
There were 'scientists' that said that trains traveling more than 45 miles per hour would kill because the human body would not hold up. The speed of sound was another 'limit' that was called the Sound Barrier for many many years. All it took was unknown at that time technology.
There is a theoretical hydrogen ram engine that would collect these sparse particles and turn them into fuel. I figure if they can be imagined into a collector they can also be an imagined 'repeller' to move them.
In any case, I doubt anybody reading this today will even know for sure.
You’re apparently missing a hit off this guy’s bong.
The whole thing is silly, but the article seems to misunderstand the premise of the notion of “warp drive” both of the fictional variety in Star Trek and the variety arising in speculative mathematical physics in the guise of exotic solutions to Einstein’s equations: the warp driven starship is not traveling at superluminal speed through space, it is changing the shape of space around it.
Of course, neither did the graphics and concept designers for Star Trek, as they made it look like the Enterprise was traveling through space.
Wait he is using CBO numbers
My Momma always said I was spatial.
I had a feeling this would be a problem. Along with that lingering uncertainty about whether a tree falling in the forest makes a sound when no one’s there, etc.
No that is true. Time dilation is responsible for that effect.
In fact, it would only take 30 human years to get to the opposite site of the universe, if the ship could allow for ever increasing speed, yet never need to be at the speed of light once done.
However, the Earth would have passed away hundreds of millions of years earlier. Odd, huh?
Appropriate shielding was developed long before hyperspace drives came along. One of the secrets was to turn the field off and on 100,000/second. Consequently, most particles would be deflected.
The books indicate that the warp field takes the ship out of normal space and moves it into a different space. Within the warp field the ship moves at normal speeds (or is maybe even motionless) relative to the field and the field itself is what moves or appears to move from point a to point b in normal space. Under these principles, the ship never reaches relativistic speeds within normal space.
To move in normal space, they used impulse engines.
Whatever. I’m not a geek. I can resist commenting on star trek physics threads as well as the next person.
Huh? If it takes light 50,000 years to make this distance, how are people going to do it in 10? Am I missing something?
Ummmm..., Warp 9 and wormholes.. :-)
Real time for them might be ten years, while back on Earth, 50,000 years would pass.
In other words, "ram air" hood scoops.
And you still are :-)
That is why we use wormholes and StarBursts in reality. Jeez.
LLS
Maybe it's ten years in ship time, since the ship is traveling at relativistic speeds and time would appear to slow down for them. From our perspective back on earth, it would take them 50,002 years if they could accelerate instantly to near light speed.
“Huh? If it takes light 50,000 years to make this distance, how are people going to do it in 10? Am I missing something?”
WOW!
Have you not heard of Warp Factor 500?!?
What a N00B. /sarc
She can’t take anymore, Cap’n! She’s gunna blow!
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