Interesting Ideas on FTL Travel

[Kemaiku]

And again, anything at to back any of that babble up?

Thought not.

 

[Silvercrest]

Bender: Like letting the air out of a balloon!

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

“Philosophy is written in that great book which ever is before our eyes -- I mean the universe -- but we cannot understand it if we do not first learn the language and grasp the symbols in which it is written. The book is written in mathematical language, and the symbols are triangles, circles and other geometrical figures, without whose help it is impossible to comprehend a single word of it; without which one wanders in vain through a dark labyrinth.”
― Galileo Galilei

“There are those who reason well, but they are greatly outnumbered by those who reason badly.”
― Galileo Galilei

“By denying scientific principles, one may maintain any paradox.”
― Galileo Galilei

 

[Gov Kodos]

The bussard collector is a fictional device in a science fiction show. If you want to talk about technology in the Star Trek setting you're in the wrong forum.

Otherwise, your entire post :facepalm:

His idea sounds like a misunderstood version of a Bussard Ramjet. Technical and theoretical issues aside, the cost of developing it to a practical large scale transport purpose makes it very unlikely to ever be built. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bussard_ramjet

 

[Ithekro]

Well they are still testing the "Quantum Vacuum Virtual Plasma Thruster" to see if the data they and the Chinese have is correct and it does work. If it does, than either it is causing movement via a method most scientists are dismissing, or something is wrong with one of the laws of physics. There will be tests in a vacuum this September I believe by White's team.

It certainly won't be an FTL drive, but (if it works) could inspire drives that work will with the currently proposed FTL drive systems White's teams are also investigating.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

https://plus.google.com/117663015413546257905/posts/WfFtJ8bYVya

 

[Tim Walker]

Maybe somebody will stumble across a cosmic string, and will use it for travel at transwarp speeds. I imagine the string forming a loop across vast distances, with one end in Federation space.

 

[Ithekro]

https://plus.google.com/117663015413546257905/posts/WfFtJ8bYVya

But the question still stands, what if they are right and did find something? We'll see.

It is almost useless even if it works...but almost useless is not totally useless.

 

[sojourner]

The bussard collector is a fictional device in a science fiction show. If you want to talk about technology in the Star Trek setting you're in the wrong forum.

Otherwise, your entire post :facepalm:

His idea sounds like a misunderstood version of a Bussard Ramjet. Technical and theoretical issues aside, the cost of developing it to a practical large scale transport purpose makes it very unlikely to ever be built. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bussard_ramjet

The Bussard Ramjet, in current thinking, doesn't work either.

 

[Gov Kodos]

The bussard collector is a fictional device in a science fiction show. If you want to talk about technology in the Star Trek setting you're in the wrong forum.

Otherwise, your entire post :facepalm:

His idea sounds like a misunderstood version of a Bussard Ramjet. Technical and theoretical issues aside, the cost of developing it to a practical large scale transport purpose makes it very unlikely to ever be built. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bussard_ramjet

The Bussard Ramjet, in current thinking, doesn't work either.

I'm not surprised.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

https://plus.google.com/117663015413546257905/posts/WfFtJ8bYVya

But the question still stands, what if they are right and did find something? We'll see.

It is almost useless even if it works...but almost useless is not totally useless.

Well at least I live in a different country so my taxes aren't paying for the research.

 

[Dryson]

http://io9.com/5987078/nasa-has-found-a-free-particle-accelerator-floating-in-space

In early 2007, NASA's Cassini spacecraft observed something extraordinary around Saturn. An unusually strong blast of solar wind sent subatomic particles crashing into the ringed planet's magnetic field, giving rise to perhaps the most tremendous shock wave ever observed emanating from the planet. But newly announced findings reveal the biggest surprise was yet to come.
The artist's impression above depicts the scene just described. Cassini can be seen at left. Emanating from the planet, grey-striped and toroidal, is Saturn's magnetosphere. The shock wave — what is known more formally as the "bow shock" region — is depicted in wispy blue.
Being carried in that shockwave are the solar particles that collided with Saturn's magnetosphere — and they're traveling fast. Observations from Cassini indicate that Saturn's bow shock had managed to accelerate these subatomic particles to nearly the speed of light. That's a feat more typical of shockwaves around distant supernovas, or particle accelerators here on Earth. Massive though it was, Saturn's bow shock would have been necessary, but not sufficient, to produce such high-energy particles — so how did they manage to get moving so fast?

The answer has to do with the orientation of the shock relative to Saturn's magnetic field. Under what are known as "quasi-parallel" conditions, a planet's magnetic field (depicted here with blue lines) will run almost parallel to a vector emanating outward from the edge of the shockwave (depicted in red).

Under "quasi-perpendicular" conditions, the magnetic field lines run more or less perpendicular to the vector. The former describes a scenario wherein the magnetic field lines and the outward direction of the shock wave are more or less aligned, and favorable to particle acceleration. According to NASA, what Cassini observed was, in fact, the first detection of significant acceleration of electrons in a quasi-parallel shock at Saturn.
Shock waves are not rare in and of themselves, but ones capable of accelerating particles to close to the speed of light are typically observed around supernova remnants that exist well beyond our immediate solar neighborhood.

"Cassini has essentially given us the capability of studying the nature of a supernova shock in situ in our own solar system," explained astronomer Adam Masters, who led the investigation into Saturn's unprecedented cosmic wave, "bridging the gap to distant high-energy astrophysical phenomena that are usually only studied remotely."

In other words: supernovas are far. Saturn, on a cosmic scale, is right down the street. Its quasi-parallel shocks, however rare, provide us with a valuable means of studying supernova shocks right here in our own solar system; and Cassini gives us front row seats. Just incredible.
[NASA]

What is really interesting is that the celestial object creating the shockwave that is able to accelerate particles to near the speed of light is that the object is Jupiter instead of a super-nova which is really hard to investigate.

We have the test ground for a system of propulsion right there within Jupiter that is able to accelerate particles to close to the speed of light.

Now back to my theory - If the process that is able to accelerate the particles around Jupiter is placed within the torodial ring with the cables attached to the parachute / solar sail then the particle can be directed through the torodial ring into the parachute / solar sail at near the speed of light to cause a forward momentum of maybe 1/4 to half the speed of light.

Does anyone else have any knowledge of the process discussed in the article above?

Oh for the non-renaissance minded....don't let the door hit ya where it split ya.

 

[sojourner]

What is really interesting is that the celestial object creating the shockwave that is able to accelerate particles to near the speed of light is that the object is Jupiter instead of a super-nova which is really hard to investigate.

Ahem, Saturn.

Yeah, all you've done is come up with a Solar Sail. Not that new or original an idea. If I understand you right and your toroidal ring is producing particles to be thrown at the sail, well, that will work as well as putting a fan on a sailboat and trying to blow yourself across the pacific.

 

[Gov Kodos]

What is really interesting is that the celestial object creating the shockwave that is able to accelerate particles to near the speed of light is that the object is Jupiter instead of a super-nova which is really hard to investigate.

Ahem, Saturn.

Yeah, all you've done is come up with a Solar Sail. Not that new or original an idea. If I understand you right and your toroidal ring is producing particles to be thrown at the sail, well, that will work as well as putting a fan on a sailboat and trying to blow yourself across the pacific.

Didn't Wile E. Coyote try to catch the Roadrunner with something along those lines?

 

[Captrek]

Short answer: not with any reasonably foreseeable technology. It certainly isn't happening in any of our lifetimes.

 

[Silvercrest]

Obviously the technology isn't up to the task because it's from Acme. And he can't catch him within any of our lifetimes because the show would be over and--

Oh. Wait.

Never mind.

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

Work out what dark energy is, then harness it, and FTL and time travel (and worse) might be possible. I'll go back to 28 September 1996 to bet on Frankie Dettori to win all seven races at Ascot. Odds of about 25000:1 for the accumulator -- nice. However, all hell might also break out with regard to causality. Several billion other buggers will likely have the same idea.

 

[sojourner]

Time travel really does have it's own version of the Fermi Paradox. If it's possible, where are all the time travelers?

 

[Silvercrest]

I've always been fond of the theory that says if you keep traveling into the past, eventually you'll change something so the time machine is never invented. Obviously once that happens, the timeline will stop changing ... therefore the only stable timeline is one where the time machine is never invented. By that definition you can say "the time machine will never be invented."

I'm not sure if that 100% holds up to logic, but it amuses me.

 

[Metryq]

Does anyone else have any knowledge of the process discussed in the article above?

For those not wedded to the fluid dynamics model (bow shocks, wind, etc.) the answer is the same as the force inside cyclotrons and other electronic devices which accelerate charged particles.

In the meantime, you may wish to buy stock in the Dean Drive.