Re: Expanding Shields

Excerpts from FT: 3-Apr-97 Re: Expanding Shields by Phillip
Pournelle@nps.na 
>   There are total collapses, but ship's usually surrendered when the
amount
> of heat in their Langston Field prevented them from extending any
sensors
> out, as the sensor stalk would get vaporized.  Read the opening battle
in 
> Mote.

?? Where did you find that?  (I'm assuming you're referring to the
battle between MacArthur and the Defiant, which was cut... I thought.) 
Besides, if the shield is too hot to extend a sensor stalk, you're not
going to be able to extend a communications stalk either....

> >Hmm, yeah, I guess that does show a basis for expanding shields... of
> >course, I don't think any ship could fire out of the shield except
the
> >one controlling it; the ships had to open "holes" so that their shots
> >weren't absorbed by the shield.  Not to mention, a ship could fly
inside
> >the shield, and then open fire on the ship inside... at least, I
think
> >they could....
>
>   Given the size of the field, etc. only ship's boats and fighters
could
> hide in the Langston Field.  There were boarding boats that would
attempt to
> coast through the field to make a breach, but you wouldn't want to do
that
> on an enemy whose field was already heated.

Well, you made me re-read the beginning of _Mote_, so now you can go
re-read the end. ^_^  "[MacArthur] was 500 meters inward from [the
collapsing Langston Field]."  OK, it's more like the late middle...
regardless, you could easily fit other cap ships inside the field
radius, which means they'd be able to fire on the generating ship *very*
easily....

		    Aaron Teske
		    Mithramuse+@cmu.edu