This is all regarding the problem of using Traveller Maneuver Drives
as super mass drivers:
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By the way, I once did the calculations about how much energy it would
take to bring an object to 0.1 c and back. I don't have the figures
handy, but I seem to remember that
o using completely efficient fusion drives, it would take 50% of the
ship's mass to accelerate to 0.1 c, then another 50% to slow to a
stop. Thus, 75% of the ship's mass would have to be fuel in order to
allow a ship to even travel at that speed, and that leaves no room
for error.
o using completely efficient matter-to-energy conversion, the figure
drops to something like 4% of the ships mass.
This is all irrelevant, however, since we have already agreed that
maneuver drives violate physics (disclaimer: as we currently understand
physics, that is).
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Let's get to the root of the problem, though:
o it takes a GREAT DEAL of energy to bring a ship up to those speeds.
o a heavy body traveling at these speeds would likely be able to
seriously affect any planet it crashed into (perhaps even decimating
the population).
o Traveller assumes that ships are routinely capable of accelerating to
these speeds.
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Anyway, as long as we're redefining physics somewhat, why not keep
things simple? In that light, here is my suggestion:
o Maneuver Drives do NOT generate enough energy to decimate a planet.
o Instead, they somehow reduce the ship's effective mass while
propelling it through space.
o Now, if a ship moving quickly with its Maneuver Drive crashes into a
planet, it will do so with a very small effective mass (possibly in
the micrograms if the ship were moving REALLY fast).
o Now for the question, what happens if you accelerate to 0.1 c and
then turn off the drives? The choices I see:
o The ship's mass immediately returns to normal, causing it to
decelerate immediately down to a speed corresponding to its
kinetic energy level.
or:
o The ship's mass slowly increases, causing the ship to drift back
to a speed corresponding to its kinetic energy level.
or:
o The ship's mass stays at its current level until the ship is
influenced by some other force (such as hitting another object).
In this case, I would also suggest that gravity wells would tend
to bring its mass back to normal.
The option you choose depends on how you want ship movement to work.
o This creates all kinds of interesting speculation:
o Ships under Maneuver Drive would be less affected by gravity.
o Maneuver Drives really would be different from grav units.
o Accelleration might have a better effect on turning the ship.
o Maneuver Drives could also have limits to their "top speeds."
o Ships moving under Maneuver Drive might always use energy.
o There may be a justification for the 6G limit.
o There may also be a justification for a volume-based system.
o Maneuver drives might also require a small additional drive, but
this is not necessary.
o There might also be hybrid systems and/or reasons to NOT use a
normal Maneuver Drive for certain circumstances.
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I thought of this at lunch today. It seemed so simple that I could
kick myself for not thinking of it earlier.
So, what do you think?
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Jerry Williams
[email removed]