Start Trek becomes reality!

[Mr. Bones]

last Monday, the Russians revealed their plans to built a new super plane called 'aerospace craft

[Craig.]

the US has simmilar plans for an aircraft to be powered by very high power lazers. could get you from sydney to LA in less than an hour. agaain maybe 20 years the demo models all work. should be really cool to see the latest east west race thats for sure.
now as for startrek, 30,000 km/h is not even 1/4 impluse power speed equivelent:) few years to go for that yet

[ozzy72]

30 000km/h is that all? You should see Fozzer on his bike when he hears that Sainsburys have a special on wine!!!!!!!!!

Ozzy

[Fozzer]

...I'll leave you lot to it... ...!
Me...?
I'm catching the good old-fashioned 'bus into Town tomorrow.... ...!
(However long it takes...).... ...!

LOL...LOL...LOL...!

Cheers all...
Paul.
(England).

P.S. Craig...don't you get too carried away with all this Star Trek, Photon Torpedo, Hyperdrive/Warpdrive, "It's life Jim. But not as we know it...",

[Craig.]

howdy Mr Fozzer.
Some of the basic principals of Star Trek are actually easaly possible today. Photon Torpedos are just matter anti matter warheads(which scientists are looking into)
quantum torpedos are a higher concentration of the matter over anti-matter.
impluse drives are obviously coming close with Kens whole point of his topic.
Warp drive is def no-where near close to being an option.

[Fozzer]

Hi Craig... ...!
I see I'm going to have to make you a nice meal to steady your nerves... ...!
The only thing I have come across lately From NASA is a "ship" fitted with sails, propelled by solar energy emitted from the Sun, travelling slower than my 'bus trip from my house into Town..(via Sainsbury's)... ...!

Me...?
I think I'm going to stay in my garden, surrounded by all my flowers, and leave you to go bombing around the Universe in your "Starfighter"... ...!
LOL...LOL...LOL...!

Cheers Craig me ol' Mate... ...!
Paul.
(Hereford).

[DanielF]

I'm sure most of the technology we see in Star Trek will become a reality eventually.  Look at some of the old science fiction novels.  A lot of the technology described in these old books were considered impossible back then, but are a reality today.

[Smoke2much]

You mean that star trek isn't real?  I thought that it was a series of nasa documentaries........

[Fozzer]

[quote]You mean that star trek isn't real?

[Katahu]

Hey Fozzer, you have the strange habit of always saying:

LOL...LOL...LOL...!

Cheers all...
Paul.
(England).

...at the end of you posts. Nothing personal. Just a comment.

Anyways Fozzer.

Any intergalactic ships [the word spaceship is used far too often] that uses solar sails can travel up to almost the speed of light.

First, they start off very slow. Then, as a year or two goes by, the ship would already reach near-light-speed records.

Remember, there is no atmosphere in space [DUH]. So, any intergalactic ships that uses solar sails will almost never encounter friction on their surface.

This technology is already a reality as of today. However, it's still in its experimental stage.

Even with this kind of technology, it will still take nearly a few decades [hopefully less] to reach the nearest star to our solar system. Alpha Centuri.

And don't expect any Klingons or Vulcans to be found anytime soon.

Even with our current human technology, we have only discovered [and charted] not even 3% of the cosmos. And our telescopes and radio satillites can only take us that far. However, Nasa is planning on building a huge-@55 radio satellite [bigger than Arecibo in Puerto Rico] on one of the craters on the far-side of the moon [where there virtually no man-made interferance]. This should extend our range because there will be no atmosphere to ruin the signals.

[Fozzer]

Hey Fozzer, you have the strange habit of always saying:

LOL...LOL...LOL...!

Cheers all...
Paul.
(England).

...at the end of you posts. Nothing personal. Just a comment.

Hi Kat...!
The reason that I use lots of "LOL's" is because I am a happy sort of chap who likes to humour the members as often as possible, and not to annoy, insult or bore them with reams of un-intelligable dross.
Therefore as a technican of many years I help where I can in an interesting and lively sort of way, without getting bogged down in too much detail, which is generally lost on most people anyway...!
I look on the Forum mostly for fun with a bit of general information thrown in now and again....
So...
You will see lots of "LOL's" and smileys from me...as usual... ...!

Cheers...
Paul.
(England...the land of mirth...)...!

P.S. I apologise if I annoy you with my laughter... ...!

[Iroquois]

I'm assuming this is a space craft.

Katahu's solar sails are an intreging idea but I believe that ion engines will be the wave a the future. Ion engines basically function by energizing plasma gas and shooting it out the back like a rocket does. Unlike rockets; however, ion engines use significantly less fuel. They start out slow but accelerate to enormous speeds.
A side note for you Sci Fi buffs. Ion engines are used in Star Trek as impulse drive (I think this is mentioned in Voyager) and all Star Wars ships have sublight power from ion drives (TIE Fighter, Twin Ion Engine). I had the Star Wars Essential Guide to Vehicles and Vessles and it explained all the different types of propulsion but I seem to have lost it.

[Travis]

Any intergalactic ships [the word spaceship is used far too often] that uses solar sails can travel up to almost the speed of light.

First, they start off very slow. Then, as a year or two goes by, the ship would already reach near-light-speed records.

Remember, there is no atmosphere in space [DUH]. So, any intergalactic ships that uses solar sails will almost never encounter friction on their surface.

All right.

[RIC_BARKER]

Solar sails are mega-inefficient. They break Carnot's rule - one of the fundamental laws of thermodynamics. If solar sails work, then it means a perpetual motion machine will work too.

Put basically, if the sail is a perfect mirror (reflects ALL radiation falling upon it) there is no radiation pressure - it won't move. If the sail is not a perfect mirror, it will eventually reach temperature equilibrium with the radiation to which it is exposed, and thus the radiation pressure is also zero, and no energy is derived.

Ion engines seem to be the future.

Ric B.

[Smoke2much]

The law is, I believe, the inverse square law.

The reason that a sailing ships sails work so well is that the form a "wing" and the "lift" generated pulls the ship forward.  This is why a square rigged ship works best with the wind on its quarter.

It is unlikely that a solar sail will generate the required Oomph.

Will