Warp 10 = Infinity

[RichT]

Can you show us your version of the equation? If I understand it correctly, the original Warp scale was speed = warp^3. And then the TNG era warp scape was speed = warp^3.3 until some undisclosed point around 9.9, where they jump the shark and head to infinity.

I based my equations on: https://www.calormen.com/star_trek/warpcalc/

Berry-Shields is more accurate but is an ass to work with unless you are a spreadsheet ninja. The "basic equation" has been floating around for a while and tends to be the one used in various online warp speed calculators, and it's accurate enough for rough work.

 

[Timo]

By this logic, this must apply to ships in different eras, like the TOS warp scale, too.

Oh, absolutely. Although since Earth insisted on inventing its own warp alone, it only approximately established the lowest warp factors, in a process that basically involved building a warp engine, finding out where the power minima for that engine were, and designating those Warp 1 though 5 or so - and then seeing a formula there and arrogantly assuming it would hold, the end result being that anything from Warp 6 up was actually misdefined and it took a century of work to get them right...

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Discofan]

I am not sure but I think in one of the cartoons they reach warp 36.

 

[Timo]

The alien guest star does w36 in "Counter-Clock Incident", yes, supposedly on the putative "TOS scale". Spock considers that an "incredible speed", and indeed the events of the adventure stretch credibility somewhat. Might be it was something of a dream sequence to begin with...

Interestingly, the heroes have no problem putting a tractor beam on something that moves at w36. It sounds a bit like lassoing a passing jetliner.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Tribble Threat]

Or lassoing a beam of light. I don't recall if I enjoyed that particular episode of TAS. I believe I liked every episode except the one with that devil guy.

RichT, well done on that equation. You have to be really good with doing math with logarithmic scales to get that to work, and you found a simpler solution than these whoever these Berry-Shields people are. I'm impressed. However, I choose to stick with the good ol' TOS equation, where it's clear that warp 36 is enormously bigger than warp 9, and there's a reason Voyager would take 70 years to get home flying at warp 9.997.

 

[dupersuper]

I think I understand the science of warp ten plus now:

Warp 10 turns you into a salamander

Warp 11 into a turtle. I mean the weird part is when you start growing a shell...

Warp 12 into a (giant) clam, oddly enough also a state of permanent happiness... It's not well explained though

Warp 13 into an octopus: By the time they got to the "all good things" third period they had invented a new device called the

Cousteau compensator (named after Jacques-Yves Cousteau who incidentally had a pet octopus that he called Marcel after Marcel Marceau, because of "The Silent World" that was his nickname for the ocean.... So you see, "silent" "mime", the connection is obvious)

that allowed you to reach warp 13 WITHOUT turning into an octopus...

And that is why they could travel safely at warp 13 in All Good Things...

So where does the smiling koala come in?