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A Starship in 20 years?

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dale00474

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Post 20 Dec 2012, 8:45 pm

A Starship in 20 years?

An engineer working for the past 30 yeas with a Fortune 500 company has designed detailed plans to build an "Enterprise." Now, don't get me wrong...I'm not a Trekie...(At least I don't think.) But I find this way of thinking to be amazing. I'm posting this just for fun and interesting conversation.

So I'm nearly 32, and in my lifetime we have made HUGE leaps in technology. That's only 32 years. Before then we made massive leaps as well. What will we see in the next 20-30 years? Many scientists say we have much of the tech needed today to create a large starship. Cal Tech has developed an ion drive that functions very similar to an "impulse" engine for sub-light speeds. Scientists are also making strides in the experimentation and understanding of folding space and faster than light technologies. Believe it or not scientists have also "transported" light and a few molecules over a distance. Granted, transportation tech such as this involves the destroying and recreation of the molecules. Apparently if they had a computer capable of storing and computing the massive amount of data they could do it with a human...I think I'll pass for a few decades before I try it.

I personally would love to see massive starships built. One or two would give us a huge leap forward in experimentation with light speed travel and exploration. Could you imagine a ship moving slow as hell but large enough to launch probes and rovers to the planets from a near-orbit location? The things we could learn would be awe inspiring. We have also learned tons from experimentation in space. How do you experiment with space travel technology without being in space? It is rather difficult. Gravity kinda pollutes results on Earth. Time works differently. Even the GPS satellites in space have to compensate for time differential due to the speed they travel around the Earth and its shear size that causes time to warp. (Look this up...i'm not kidding.) We learned the hard way about this when the GPS network was first launched. Not to mention the fact that you're in a vacuum but not in "empty" space. Believe it or not we now know (through experimentation in space) that space isn't empty. Gene R. was on to something with Deflector Dishes to push particles out of the way of a fast moving space vehicle. Scientists now know that without such a device a ship would burn up from friction much like an object during re-entry back to Earth.

Do you think we'll have the tech to accomplish what you see in many of the movies such as Star Trek in 20-30 yrs? Think its a good idea? Know of any good strides in the move to accomplishing such a leap forward as this?

I for one hope one day we do develop this. More than likely I will be too old to experience it. I might get lucky enough to sit back and watch it happen. I'm just curious what you guys think given many of you are in your teens or younger.
-Dale :moderator:In-game admin/GM

Refuge: n. That which shelters or protects from danger or from distress or calamity; a stronghold which protects by its strength or a sanctuary which secures safety by its sacredness; a place inaccessible to an enemy.
 

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MrsRicochet

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Post 20 Dec 2012, 9:48 pm

Re: A Starship in 20 years?

My Grandfather worked for NASA during the very first moon landing and he got to see it all first hand. It was a terrific step forward for human kind and something I'm very proud to brag about. Haha. (He even has a few photo's :P)

So if he was there for such an important event in humanity, I gotta get my story ready for my grandkids. A spaceship would be pretty impressive, right?
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darkrai202

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Post 21 Dec 2012, 10:37 am

Re: A Starship in 20 years?

I saw the iPad mini. That was amazing, new, creative.

HOW DID APPLE DO IT.

Biggest leap everrrrrr.
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rolyd90

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Post 21 Dec 2012, 12:20 pm

Re: A Starship in 20 years?

I have a risky, brillant idea (thought), nuclear technology, few reactors powering some engines. If drones can fly, why cant we make a huge version of them? City size spaceship, powered by a few reactors or something.

If only we had shields... :sci-fi-beamup:
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dale00474

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Post 21 Dec 2012, 12:49 pm

Re: A Starship in 20 years?

http://m.youtube.com/?reload=3&rdm=mf8t ... AakbHMvgzI

Inspiration for my original post

If we take the Star Trek model in that timeframe they built a starship in 2151. Do you think it will happen by then? One huge concern is protecting crew against solAr radiation. Believe it or not their has been some promising and successful experimentation in space with magnetic shielding. Apparently this engineer also proposes nuclear powered ion drive for propulsion. The problem is a treaty banning nuclear testing and the launch of nuclear payload into space. I think the first step is the ISS. From there if the global powers join together I reckon we could have a functional space station (much larger) further out of earth orbit but still close by to minimise orbital decay to begin construction of long range space craft much like what you see in the video above

One interesting thing to mention is that many scientists and NASA experts say compared to the ocean ( the only other place of exploration) space is easy. One thing when thinking more about it is I mentioned experimentation based ship to start. The original enterprise was a science ship. Maybe this goes to say something. Maybe it IS the starting point.

Something I find fascinating is the ability for sci-if to impact technology. You know the idea of an iPad like computer was first seen on Star Trek? Same for a new technology for giving an injection without a needle which has only just hit the market a few years ago. Transporters, mobile communication devices that were handheld with a flip phone style design. All inspired by that as well. The theories of Einstein's folding of space was proven a few years ago. An astronomer studying a distant star documented light being warped by the mass of the moon. This has since been studied and has proven Einstein's theory. We're getting closer...
-Dale :moderator:In-game admin/GM

Refuge: n. That which shelters or protects from danger or from distress or calamity; a stronghold which protects by its strength or a sanctuary which secures safety by its sacredness; a place inaccessible to an enemy.
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dale00474

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Post 27 Dec 2012, 1:36 pm

Re: A Starship in 20 years?

Sorry for the double post...

Tonight ill post a few links on the subject. A scientist by the name of Dr. White has begun preliminary testing with NASA on construction of a laboratory based warp drive. The 2012 symposium on the 100 Year Star Ship project saw his mathematical and experimental results on the new engine design that takes the mass energy needed to create a warp bubble from the size of Jupiter to a mass energy load of less than 2000kg. This now makes it theoretically practical to create such an engine. NASA is now in the experimental and construction stage. This is awesome.
-Dale :moderator:In-game admin/GM

Refuge: n. That which shelters or protects from danger or from distress or calamity; a stronghold which protects by its strength or a sanctuary which secures safety by its sacredness; a place inaccessible to an enemy.

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