[Space] FTL Ideas/Thoughts

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by scc

I sort of assume that the first wave of colonization was conducted with FTL-1 and it's 5 times multiplier at best and colony ships aren't normally speedsters, so that puts even Alpha Centauri several years travel away. Also I thinking portals came first, so to a certain extent the colony ships were one way


Why aren't you putting out a continuous signal? And remember FTL-3 can only be used until the first hop. Chances are a SAR group isn't going to be dispatched until they think a ship missing

You're playing with a much less connected setting than I was figuring on -- each colony will be very much its own place, and I suspect the main cargo will be people and supplies leaving the home system for good -- emigration, not trade.

The reason you aren't sending out a constant distress call is to preserve power -- you don't want to leave your reactor running with everyone in the stasis pods, and solar panels in interstellar space can't be providing that much power.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by ericthered

The reason you aren't sending out a constant distress call is to preserve power -- you don't want to leave your reactor running with everyone in the stasis pods, and solar panels in interstellar space can't be providing that much power.

Solar powers are generally considered useless beyond the orbit of Jupiter if not sooner. At Jupiter (5x as far as Earth) solar panels are delivering only 1/25th as much energy.

At 1000 AU it's only 1/1,000,000th as much and that still a distance measured in light _days_ rather than years.

If your emergency power is rtgs (such as deep space probes normally use) you'll have a constant power output for decades.

[scc]

Yeah, and considering that current fusion power research is stuck at solving the more power out then in problem, it's probably best to just leave a fusion reactor going, epically with an on going drain like life support. Plus the whole issue of the SAR vessel not knowing how long it needs to wait.

And you're right about increasing the speed, at FTL-3 with a single tank of Advanced Fusion Pulse fuel Alpha Centauri is 18 years travel time away (Which is much better then in real life

[ericthered]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

You learn something every day. This is awesome. Any idea how this fits into power points in spaceships?

If your emergency power is rtgs (such as deep space probes normally use) you'll have a constant power output for decades.

You learn something every day. This is awesome. Any idea how this fits into power points in spaceships?

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With leaving the fusion plant on -- leaving a fusion power pant running without supervision sounds quite scary. Particuarly if I'm counting on it running in order to survive. I suppose if you have a good enough automated system you could wake the tech's up if there is a problem, but still --- I'd prefer to find a way to turn the thing off.

[Flyndaran]

Power Points in Spaceships aren't realistic. Most non-nuclear plant should give at most 1/10 PPs, while Solar should give 1/100 PPs.

There are ways to squeeze out efficiency from RTGs, but you'll never get more than half the thermal output of the radioactives, about 0.5 kW/kg for Pu 238. But Plutonium 238's half life of 87.7 years gives a nice long usefulness.

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by scc

Yeah, and considering that current fusion power research is stuck at solving the more power out then in problem, it's probably best to just leave a fusion reactor going, epically with an on going drain like life support. Plus the whole issue of the SAR vessel not knowing how long it needs to wait.

And you're right about increasing the speed, at FTL-3 with a single tank of Advanced Fusion Pulse fuel Alpha Centauri is 18 years travel time away (Which is much better then in real life

Shouldn't FTL anything go faster than light? Alpha Centauri is 4.37 light years away.

Regardless of what a society's ground based technology could get away with, spaceships will certainly be more streamlined with compromises made for mass and volume.
Even minor malfunctions could "just" lead to horrible overheating and cooking the crew. Better to have auto shutdowns, and emergency backup power for hibernation tubes / nanostasis / freeze suites / etc.

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by Fred Brackin

Solar powers are generally considered useless beyond the orbit of Jupiter if not sooner. At Jupiter (5x as far as Earth) solar panels are delivering only 1/25th as much energy.
...

Solar panels are also huge and fragile under the best of circumstances. You don't need to have space pirates or cinematic meteor showers to care about long term upkeep and repair costs.

[scc]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

Shouldn't FTL anything go faster than light? Alpha Centauri is 4.37 light years away.

Regardless of what a society's ground based technology could get away with, spaceships will certainly be more streamlined with compromises made for mass and volume.
Even minor malfunctions could "just" lead to horrible overheating and cooking the crew. Better to have auto shutdowns, and emergency backup power for hibernation tubes / nanostasis / freeze suites / etc.

FTL here is a speed multiplier, if the multiplier is too low and your not going fast enough your effective velocity isn't FTL.

There might be backup power for the hibernation tubes, but not for years/centenaries

[Flyndaran]

I stand by my question. Perhaps SM would make more sense than slower than light faster than light travel.

Edit: Not a criticism of the concept or science fiction-iness, just naming convention.

[scc]

Well for one thing SM is already taken in GURPS meanings. And the reason I've been using FTL numbers up until now is that that's how Spaceships rates Stardrive units