The Starship Builders (Speculation on UFO Propulsion methods by Physist)

Stardrive ^ | FR Post 3-15-03 (Article update 1999) | by Kim Burrafato

[boris]

"Question for you boris: Do we have Cherenkov-detectors placed around the planet, either on it or in near space?"

I used "Cherenkov" as an example of potential traces of FTL travel. That's what "e.g." stands for.

And yes, we have lots of such detectors--they are called eyeballs, and almost everyone has a couple.

--Boris

[Frank_Discussion]

Ok, boris, don't be an ass. I was asking seriously, and you fire back vitriol. I know what "e.g." means, don't be so snide.

Do you have an answer to my specific question, or just more deflective bull$hit? I'm irritated with you because I merely asked a real question, to which there should be a real answer, and you decided to stay on your UFO-bashing rant.

[Monty22]

Don't tell me that even NASA got duped by yet another free energy scam..

Humans have some irrational belief that perpetual motion devices are real, and have been scammed by them since the first cavemen.

[skinkinthegrass]

yes, it all was

[Jim Noble]

I always knew Zephraim Cochran was an old drunk. This is where he stole (will steal?) the idea from!

exotic matter will be needed in order to generate a distortion of spacetime like the one discussed here

Haven't they ever heard of dilithium?

[boris]

"Ok, boris, don't be an ass. I was asking seriously, and you fire back vitriol."

Wait a bit. I haven't really wound up with the vitriol in quite a while.

--Boris

[Frank_Discussion]

Truce? You're not listening, and I didn't want a flame war.

(All the trouble I get for asking a sincere question...)

[Poohbah]

One thought: if NASA can reduce the effect of gravity on a rocket by just a percentage point, that turns into megabucks per launch of savings.

[ez]

That reminds me of an idea I had once...I envisioned a magnetic propulsion system, utilizing gyroscopes or whatever (I am NOT well versed in physics), in which a strong magnetic field is created which "attracts" the craft from the front and "repels" the ship from the rear.

Thus the poles for the magnetic field have to be "projected" to a point outside the ship by some sort of field amplifier. The poles have to be reversible to stop.

Also, humans would have to be shielded or isolated from a magnetic field of that strength.

I'm sure this is impossible or someone would have thought of it...but it seems more likely than the other crazy propulsion systems I've read about.

[timestax]

In the 1950's there was a well known cartoon strip that featured SpaceCraft that used magnetism to get around. So, there you go, use powerful magnets to leave Earths' gravity!ha ha hha hahhah, I know it's not that simple.

[Quix]

Thanks.

I didn't bother with every paragraph but it seems like an impressive enough essay to me.

I do suspect, however, that things are much more progressed beyond this paper than is hinted at.

[Quix]

And how do you filter out the disinformation from the fact, from the conjecture, from the dreaming, fantasies and even sometimes from the mere hogwash?

[Myrddin]

Check out some working technology here

[techcor]

I'm pretty sure that's impossible because you have to fix the magnetic fields to your craft. It would be like pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps. Actually, I think there was a sci-fi book by that name "The Bootstrap Effect" but I'm not sure who wrote it.

If your interested in near future technology for space travel, look up americium 242m or "Two weeks to Mars" on google. It's 100 times as powerful as plutonium. 1 gram I think was suppose to equal 2 tons of jet fuel. For some reason no one around FR knows about or is interested in it.

One last thought is why do we need matter to transmit momentum? Think about it. If you use a powerful laser, it heats up (i.e. transfers momentum) say a propellant which shoots out the back and the rocket goes forward. Why can't there be just electro-magnetic energy that shoots out the back of the rocket and transfers momentum to the universe in general.

[Poohbah]

Lots of stuff in there has been shot down since.

Alcubierre's "warp drive" has one small problem: ASSUMING you manage to get the thing actually started, it's physically impossible to turn it off.

[Quix]

It's plausible that even ET's would have limits placed on their options.

But, Von Braun insisted that after the Iraq war planned in 1970ish, we would be called on to fight the evil ET's--something he considered a hideous hoax--his being convinced all the ET's were benign.

[Captain Beyond]

bump for later read

[Quix]

It would be interesting to see your face turn white when a LOT of things start falling out of reality which your biases have precluded from ever happening. . . regardless of the size of your mansion and distance from a trailer park.

Arrogance doesn't look any better on you than chartreuse.

[techcor]

Also, check out Myrddin's post to you and "Lifter technology". Someone here said they must be using an "ionic breeze" but according to some of their info it actuall works in a vacuum (which would eliminate that as a theory).

[Quix]

Wonderful to read a balanced reply.