Re: Crowbars

"Izenberg, Noam" wrote:
> You'd have to generate convincing PSB of an antimatter containment
system
> that wouldn't consume and broadcast enough energy to give significant
> advanced warning. 

	Well, it depends on how FTL works in Full Thrust.
	The basic book says that "the forces generated by FTL
	drive units are very powerful and result in spatial
	distortions that can be highly dangerous in close proximity
	to any other mass, including other ships."

	It does not give enough detail to judge how much damage
	will be inflicted on ship/missile X when within Y kilometers
	of a planet.

	In other words: if the crowbar pops out of FTL about six
milimeters 
	above the planetary defense base, the base doesn't have a
chance.

	But if FTL flight is impossible within an astronomical unit or
	so of a planetary mass, it is still possible to figure out some
	way of getting some nasty warheads delivered to planetary
	targets without significant advanced warning.  It may take some
	doing, though.

	Here is Professor Apocalyse's patented "Catch me if you can"
	relativistic warhead delivery system!

	First you need space opera levels of power.  Covering your
	innermost planet's equator with solar cells should do.

	Next you need a mass driver (some kind of magnetic linear
	accelerator) parked outside of the FTL gravity limit, with
	an exceedingly long extension cord plugged into
	the solar cells.  A power transmission laser will do in a pinch.
	Just don't get in its way...

	Finally, you need your warhead carrier.  All it needs is
	[1] one outrageously high yield warhead, [2] one FTL drive
	with enough of a power source to run it, and [3]
	enough computer control to run things.

	Step 1: The warhead enters the mass driver at the rear, at 
	point "A".
	Step 2: The mass driver accelerates the warhead.
	Step 3: The warhead emerges from the mass driver from the front,

	at point "B".
	Step 4: The warhead enters FTL flight, moves from point "B" to
	point "A", and leaves FTL flight.
	Step 5: Go to Step 1.

	Keep the warhead going through the cycle for a month or so,
	and it will be moving at about 98% of the speed of light.

	Actually, at this speed, the warhead becomes superfluous.
	A wad of belly button lint travelling at 0.98c, penetrating
	the atmosphere will generate enough gamma rays to vaporize
	everything within several hundred miles and make a pool
	of lava with the same radius and many hundreds of feet deep.

	Now you send it to the target planet.

	It pops out of FTL space at one AU from the target planet.
	Transit time is about 8 minutes.

	However, a funny thing happens when you try to observe
	an object travelling at 0.98c with sensors using
	light, radio, or other sensors that travel at c.
	You can *never* see where the object *is*, you can only
	see where it *was*.

	Look at it this way: The warhead pops out of FTL flight
	at point X.  At this point it becomes visible.	

	Imagine a photon of light/radio/ultraviolet/whatever that 
	starts at point X with the warhead and is heading towards the
	target planet.	It is travelling at c.
	The warhead also starts at point X. It is travelling at
	0.98c.

	The photon will arrive at the target in 8 minutes.
	9.6 seconds later the warhead arrives.

	So when the planetary defense base spots the warhead,
	it has 9.6 seconds to react.  It doesn't help to
	have picket ships posted in deep orbit.  Their warning
	messages are unlikely to arrive any sooner, and probably
	will arrive after the warhead strikes.
	The picket ship cannot enter FTL and fly to the planet
	because the probe emerges at the FTL limit, remember?

	The planetary base's problems are not over.
	How does it interdict the blasted thing?

	One problem is that it can only see where the warhead was,
	not where it is.  If the warhead can maneuver at all,
	it will be impossible to hit with an aimed shot.
	
	And even if you hit it with a nuke, you haven't stopped it.
	Now instead of a projectile travelling at 0.98c,
	you have a cloud of gas travelling at 0.98c.
	The cloud will do exactly the same amount of damage
	to the target, it will just be diluted over a larger area.
	The ground may only be molten to a depth of 200 feet instead of
500.

	For more details about this depressing scenario,
	find a copy of THE KILLING STAR by Charles Pelligrino and
	George Zebrowski.