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From: zubbie@ihlpa.UUCP (Jeanette Zobjeck)
Newsgroups: net.startrek
Subject: Re: A possible inconsistancy...
Message-ID: <231@ihlpa.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 10-May-85 13:04:36 EDT
Article-I.D.: ihlpa.231
Posted: Fri May 10 13:04:36 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 11-May-85 03:14:55 EDT
References: <1513@sunybcs.UUCP> <1503@aecom.UUCP>
Distribution: net
Organization: AT&T Bell Laboratories
Lines: 37

> > 
> >    I have never understood something (maybe I'm just ignorant!) and I
> > would like it if someone could explain it to me...
> >    On many episodes,(one example is 'Day of the Dove'), the ship is
> > out of control and racing through space at warp factor > 10.  And of
> > course Scotty cuts in with the usual 'The ship canae take the stress no
> > more.  She'll break apart!'  My question:  Even if the ship is traveling
> > faster that it is supposed to, what causes the stress?  After all, there
> > is no air out in space to create a drag effect...
> > 
> > 
> > Live long and try to prosper (It's getting harder every day!).
> 
> *** REPLACE THIS LINE WITH YOUR MESSAGE ***
> 
> 
> There is no inconsistency the stress is on the engines. The reason the
>  that
> Scotty says - she'll rip(blow,tear,etc.) apart - is simple.The engines
> put out a lot of power. They are not made to put out to much power though
> since they will start wearing down, via the stress, and the ship will be
> blown apart when the matter/antimatter meet. I don't remember which 
> episode that explanation was on but it was there.

While space might be a vacume it is far from an empty place at at
translight speeds the friction and drag caused by the tenous grains
of space matter would have a definite effect on the integrity of the
ship. under normal conditions the deflector screens or some such 
device could act to push this material out of the way but all mechanisms
have some upper limit.

While the discussions in this group haev failed to resolve the actual
multiplier for e which warp factor 10 represents even 10*e would be
more than a significant velocity.

jeanette zobjeck
ihnp4!ihlpa!zubbie