Stupid Question

Theresa · **Fri Mar 22, 2002 3:01 pm**

Ok, I was watching some TOS today, and I noticed something strange. One of the shuttlecraft literally ran out of gas. I have also seen this on the other series, not so blatant, of course, but it's there. My question is, if they are in space, where there is virtually no friction, nothing really to slow them down, why would they need to "have their foot on the gas pedal" the whole time? I can understand manuevering thrusters and such, but not the engines constantly being used for propulsion the whole time. I understand that when they are at warp, they need them to keep the warp bubble stable, but when at impulse and sublight speeds, you'd think all they'd need would be the initial thrust.

Lt.BirdGod · **Fri Mar 22, 2002 3:34 pm**

Basically, you need to be in control the whole time. Not just fire up the engines, then use inertia to move on out, but if like your pitch was off by even 1/2 of a degree, that can add up, without you noticing.

Theresa · **Fri Mar 22, 2002 3:37 pm**

Yeah, I understand that, but isn't there a way to have the engines on, and not have to use them for propulsion %100 of the time?

Seven of Nine · **Fri Mar 22, 2002 3:44 pm**

Dunno... probably in the future

Theresa · **Fri Mar 22, 2002 7:57 pm**

Chinesetrekkie · **Sun Mar 24, 2002 2:44 am**

Theresa · **Sun Mar 24, 2002 10:37 pm**

Ok, here's another stupid question. They are always talking about the ships structural integrity. Again, what would that matter? I know they'd have to have sheilds/screens to deflect debris in space, but there is no friction, no gravity pulling at the ship, so what's the problem? Like when Sulu's helmsman on the Excelsior says that they are going to fly the ship apart, ????

It doesn't make any difference if you went in space and threw a baseball, or shot a bullet, they would just keep on going, and the only thing that would cause their shape to change, or any stress on/in either object would be an outside force, not the object itself being propelled through space, because again, there is no gravity, no friction, nothing to slow it down. I took into consideration that the ship has atmosphere, and artificial gravity, but didn't see how that would affect anything, seeing as how the ship is a solid object on the outside. Maybe I am complicating things, but I am just trying to understand.

Oh, yeah, back to my first question, on the TOS ep I was watching, (the one where they court martial Spock), the Commodore says now they just drift, they still had shields and all, so they were safe, but shouldn't they just have kept drifting at the speed they were at indefinitely? (until acted upon by another outside force, i.e., a planet, meteor, etc.....?

Commissar · **Wed Mar 27, 2002 9:13 am**

Without structural integrity fields the enormous amount of speed generated by the ship would tear it to pieces.
Ex.: make a ship out of Lego's, don't snap them together, only let the pieces barely touch each other. Now throw it across the room. That's what would happen to a ship without structural integrity fields.

And to answer your second question, there is friction and resistance in space in the form of dust particles and small meteorites, that's why ships have a deflector dish.

Theresa · **Wed Mar 27, 2002 12:57 pm**

Ok, the second part I can handle, but not the first. A ship w/ sheilds is deflecting the dust particles, etc..., so that virtually, not totally, but virtually eliminates the friction that would slow it down. If you threw the legos in a vaccuum, they would just keep going and going until impacted by some outside force, they wouldn't fall apart, they'd have no reason to. And since space is a vaccuum, it would hold that the same principle applies there.

The Story Teller · Lieutenant Joined: 14 Mar 2002 Posts: 190 Location: Bridge

don't forget that you have to use power up for everything else, sensors, lifesupport ect...

Theresa · **Thu Mar 28, 2002 12:35 am**

Defiant · **Thu Mar 28, 2002 3:52 pm**

Questionable...

LanariaRayton · **Wed Apr 10, 2002 3:00 pm**

Everyhing you say do have a point, but then again Star Trek isn't made out to be real. It is imagination, an foreseeable universe where the unthoughtable is thought of. How do we know what should be or could be when we ourselves are only now learning about what is actually out there in space.

MT39503 · Commodore Joined: 10 Apr 2002 Posts: 1437 Location: AZ

IN apce there is no pressure. On speacecraft there is. Without intregrity feilds or supportsof some sort, the whole ship would explode outward killing everyone. Don't want that happening.

EmergencyCommandHologram · **Fri Apr 26, 2002 7:44 am**

The stuctural integrety question: They need to maintain it not because of friction or speed, but because acceleration and the stress it puts on the ship. inertial dampers are supposed to stop this, but then again, most of the time structural integretity is failing is when they are bumping around, and therefore the inertial dampers are not working 100%. and also the pressure inside the ship is very high compared to outside, but that really shouldn't be a problem.

and yes, your right about the ship drifting forever even if their engines did stop. its something ive always found funny too

LanariaRayton · **Fri Apr 26, 2002 9:14 pm**

I agree on all parts

parkan · **Fri Apr 26, 2002 10:12 pm**

Mind you, we are talking about warp theory here. Star Trek's Warp is based mostly on the theory of relativity but a lare part of it is made up. Eseesntially, all ships travelling at warp experience temportal stress proportional to thier warp factor (as they are travelling past the theoretical limit, i.e. speed of light, of travel through either space or time). Also, it is never fully explained but when they go in or come out of warp their speed through actaul space increases to some very high value, perhaps the speed of light. If they collide with a dust particle at that speed, the ship is going to be torn apart. Hence the deflector dish (no deflector=no warp, remember?). You also need lots and lots of energy to fight the temporal stress.

mr_glyn · **Mon May 27, 2002 7:35 am**

going back to the original queston ,

when the space shuttle fire's there rockets in one sort burst they carry on going until they hit someting

they probley use there power going left right up down . ect ect

MT39503 · Commodore Joined: 10 Apr 2002 Posts: 1437 Location: AZ

mr_glyn · **Sat Jun 01, 2002 4:31 am**

good point but dramatic or not its pants even nowadays we have nuculear subs

MT39503 · Commodore Joined: 10 Apr 2002 Posts: 1437 Location: AZ

mr_glyn · **Sat Jun 01, 2002 9:17 am**

well neuculear subs have an near endless supply of energy unlike a jet rocket

MT39503 · Commodore Joined: 10 Apr 2002 Posts: 1437 Location: AZ

Not endless, the reaction would eventually die out! everything does. What we were saying is that a moving object in space would never stop due to Neuton's laws.

parkan · **Sat Jun 01, 2002 12:18 pm**

6 OF 9 · **Wed Jun 05, 2002 3:00 am**