Force Fields and Shields in the real world
- Thread starter Brent
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All Seeing Eye
Admiral
well just off the top of my head (so I may be mistaken) I'm aware of a piece of technology being developed that can protect a crew against radiation, it involves creating an electromagnetic field around the space vessel, this EM field is capable of containing high energy plasma within it which prevents cosmic rays from penetrating but thats pretty much all i'm aware of except maybe the tank armour that's been developed similar to the polarised hull plating of the NX-01 enterprise.
We already have forcefields. They're made by these things called "magnets." There are also gravitational forcefields generated by planets and moons and stars. The difference between reality and fiction is that a real forcefield isn't an "invisible wall," but a gradient -- a push or a pull in a certain direction. Making a forcefield that acts like a solid wall or floor is essentially a non-starter -- even if it were somehow doable, it would be really complicated, and it wouldn't achieve anything you couldn't achieve more practically or efficiently by building an actual wall or floor.
But there are ways that electromagnetic fields can be used to shield against various dangers. Spaceships can theoretically use magnetic fields to shield against particle radiation and solar flares, the same way that the Earth's magnetic field protects us. A strong enough magnetic field could also deflect particle beams, in principle. That can't protect against electromagnetic radiation or lasers, though. For that, you need a physical barrier. One thing that's being researched -- and Fire alluded to this but got the details wrong -- is a layer of cold plasma that can theoretically be "tuned" to absorb photons of a particular wavelength or range of wavelengths; this could be potentially used to shield against UV or gamma radiation or lasers, or to provide stealth against radar beams.
Using forcefields to deflect physical projectiles is a different matter, though. For one thing, most projectiles aren't electrically charged. Something metallic could possibly be deflected by a strong enough magnetic field; indeed, a really powerful magnetic field can even magnetize and affect things that aren't normally magnetic, as shown in those experiments a few years back where a teragauss field was used to levitate an unwitting frog. This would require vast amounts of energy, though. And the problem, again, is that a forcefield isn't a wall, but a push or a pull. Any field of force can be overcome simply by exerting more force, by pushing harder in the opposite direction. So an EM field might be able to deflect a purely ballistic projectile or a meteoroid, but a missile under thrust could just adjust its thrust to compensate for the push of your field and still end up hitting you. Again, it's simpler and more efficient to use a physical barrier -- an extra hull around your ship or station, with vacuum between it and the inner hull. The outer hull absorbs the impact energy and vaporizes the impactor, and the vacuum prevents the heat and concussive shock from being transmitted to the ship or station.
All too often, sci-fi embraces exotic solutions like energy fields and death rays and tractor beams because they seem more futuristic and wondrous than more mundane solutions like walls and bullets and cables. But in real engineering, the simpler, more efficient solution is better than the more complicated, flashy solution. Fields of force have their uses, but they can't really take the place of a good, solid wall.
But there are ways that electromagnetic fields can be used to shield against various dangers. Spaceships can theoretically use magnetic fields to shield against particle radiation and solar flares, the same way that the Earth's magnetic field protects us. A strong enough magnetic field could also deflect particle beams, in principle. That can't protect against electromagnetic radiation or lasers, though. For that, you need a physical barrier. One thing that's being researched -- and Fire alluded to this but got the details wrong -- is a layer of cold plasma that can theoretically be "tuned" to absorb photons of a particular wavelength or range of wavelengths; this could be potentially used to shield against UV or gamma radiation or lasers, or to provide stealth against radar beams.
Using forcefields to deflect physical projectiles is a different matter, though. For one thing, most projectiles aren't electrically charged. Something metallic could possibly be deflected by a strong enough magnetic field; indeed, a really powerful magnetic field can even magnetize and affect things that aren't normally magnetic, as shown in those experiments a few years back where a teragauss field was used to levitate an unwitting frog. This would require vast amounts of energy, though. And the problem, again, is that a forcefield isn't a wall, but a push or a pull. Any field of force can be overcome simply by exerting more force, by pushing harder in the opposite direction. So an EM field might be able to deflect a purely ballistic projectile or a meteoroid, but a missile under thrust could just adjust its thrust to compensate for the push of your field and still end up hitting you. Again, it's simpler and more efficient to use a physical barrier -- an extra hull around your ship or station, with vacuum between it and the inner hull. The outer hull absorbs the impact energy and vaporizes the impactor, and the vacuum prevents the heat and concussive shock from being transmitted to the ship or station.
All too often, sci-fi embraces exotic solutions like energy fields and death rays and tractor beams because they seem more futuristic and wondrous than more mundane solutions like walls and bullets and cables. But in real engineering, the simpler, more efficient solution is better than the more complicated, flashy solution. Fields of force have their uses, but they can't really take the place of a good, solid wall.
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