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re: Something to consider before sending nano-probes speeding off into space
Posted on 8/27/16 at 9:10 pm to PatDyesPants
Posted on 8/27/16 at 9:10 pm to PatDyesPants
Why don't you call up those PhDs and inform them of their gross oversight.
You do realize that it wouldn't be going at those speeds for a flyby, that it probably wouldn't be aimed to intercept the planet, and even if it did, the atmosphere would either deflect it or instantly incinerate it?
You do realize that it wouldn't be going at those speeds for a flyby, that it probably wouldn't be aimed to intercept the planet, and even if it did, the atmosphere would either deflect it or instantly incinerate it?
0
Posted on 8/27/16 at 9:12 pm to PatDyesPants
quote:
50 atomic bombs added to an atmosphere basically all at once?
Might raise temperatures by 2 degrees for a day.
Posted on 8/27/16 at 9:15 pm to Brosef Stalin
quote:
If they pass close enough to a star or even a large planet, the gravitational pull might be strong enough to slow it down
Simply turning off the laser propulsion prior to entering the solar system's heliosheath would be enough.
Dunno how much it will slow after having to push against solar wind the last few years, but it will probably be pretty big compared to the top speed.
Might only be a couple percent light speed.
Posted on 8/27/16 at 9:17 pm to Volvagia
^^^ nerd
Posted on 8/27/16 at 9:21 pm to Motorboat
Got a merit badge for it and everything
Posted on 8/27/16 at 9:31 pm to Volvagia
How does solar wind affect speed?
I keep fairly up to date on space topics but solar wind affecting travel speed is one i haven't heard about
Are you specifically talking about entering The systems heliosphere? Or saying solar wind affects all space travel speeds in solar systems?
I keep fairly up to date on space topics but solar wind affecting travel speed is one i haven't heard about
Are you specifically talking about entering The systems heliosphere? Or saying solar wind affects all space travel speeds in solar systems?
This post was edited on 8/27/16 at 9:38 pm
Posted on 8/27/16 at 11:51 pm to Lsuchs
Solar sails is a very old school method of interstellar craft.
The entire premise of this is a derivation of that, to have a sail artificially powered by lasers.
But the problem with it (which they somewhat address) is the same issue as the OP but on a smaller scale: particles with a mass of a couple milligrams will have a similar impact as a bullet strike at relativistic speeds.
It's why sci-fi ships have "shields." Protecting the ship from alien pew-pews is a fringe benefit of the real reason: protecting the craft from impacts while traveling at rapid speeds.
You cut the accelerative force, and if you design the craft to withstand those impacts, then they will start to slow it down.
Especially when they hit the heliosheath, the boundary with the interstellar medium which also happens to have a relatively high density of trapped particles, and starts having to fight against outflowing solar wind (although the mere existence is what matters most....velocity vector of the wind is meaningless in this context).
It won't stop it, but it will definitely start to decelerate the craft.
The entire premise of this is a derivation of that, to have a sail artificially powered by lasers.
But the problem with it (which they somewhat address) is the same issue as the OP but on a smaller scale: particles with a mass of a couple milligrams will have a similar impact as a bullet strike at relativistic speeds.
It's why sci-fi ships have "shields." Protecting the ship from alien pew-pews is a fringe benefit of the real reason: protecting the craft from impacts while traveling at rapid speeds.
You cut the accelerative force, and if you design the craft to withstand those impacts, then they will start to slow it down.
Especially when they hit the heliosheath, the boundary with the interstellar medium which also happens to have a relatively high density of trapped particles, and starts having to fight against outflowing solar wind (although the mere existence is what matters most....velocity vector of the wind is meaningless in this context).
It won't stop it, but it will definitely start to decelerate the craft.
This post was edited on 8/28/16 at 11:25 am
Posted on 8/27/16 at 11:59 pm to Lsuchs
Posted on 8/28/16 at 12:08 am to PatDyesPants
Email this to NASA before it's too late.
Posted on 8/28/16 at 1:24 am to Lsuchs
They should really focus on terra forming Mars.
Humans will be extinct by the time our sun dies anyway.
5 billion years or so
Humans will be extinct by the time our sun dies anyway.
5 billion years or so
Posted on 8/28/16 at 1:29 am to Lsuchs
What if the nano probes survive crashing into a planet with no atmosphere and they create some kind of Cybertron planet that breeds the Autobots and Decepticons? The nano probe could be the Allspark.
We really need to think this shite through.
We really need to think this shite through.
Posted on 8/28/16 at 7:14 am to Volvagia
quote:
fridge benefit
Posted on 8/28/16 at 7:39 am to Lsuchs
quote:
-The mass of our entire solar system is 1.0014 solar masses. So almost all of the mass is located in the sun.
-the diameter of the sun is about 900,000 miles
-from earth to the sun is 93 million miles, which equals 1 AU.
-pluto's average distance from the sun is 40 AU.
-Pluto is 5 light hours from the sun.
-Alpha Centauri is 4.25 light years from the sun.
-you could fit over 7,400 solar systems between here and Alpha Cebtauri (I only included sun to Pluto, not Ort cloud, since we are talking about hitting a habitable planet)
so you could pretty much fit 100 suns between the sun and earth, and 4,000 suns between the earth and Pluto. how many plutos you could fit between Pluto and the sun is mind boggling.
So the odds of randomly passing through our solar system and hitting a planet is very very small, the odds of even hitting a solar system passing through The Galaxy is very small, combined with odds of life on a random planet... I think we are fine
^mass is pretty spread out across the galaxy
: odds it hits nothing>>>odds it hits a star/sun>>>>>>>>>odds it hits a planet
So, you are saying there is a chance....
Posted on 8/28/16 at 7:59 am to PatDyesPants
quote:
So, if we send out a string of probes to transmit back data, and they don't get stopped and then all hit a planet beyond somewhere, we will be effectively bombing that planet from afar.
The formula for relativistic kinetic energy is:
E = mc2/sqrt(1/(v2/c2)) - mc2
Assuming a 1kg probe (far more massive than those being contemplated) traveling at 0.2 c, we can plug in and get:
E = mc2/0.98 - mc2 = .02 mc2 = .02 x 90 gigajoules.
I'm guessing that some of the rest mass might also get converted too, but even total conversion to energy can't be more than 92 gigajoules.
According to LINK a MOAB bomb is about 50 gigajoules, so an impact is very roughly the size of the biggest conventional explosives. Really bad if you happen to be standing there and would destroy a city block or two.
Posted on 8/28/16 at 8:21 am to emanresu
Then Obama would apologize to the Proxima Centurians...
Posted on 8/28/16 at 10:55 am to Spirit of Dunson
Gawd dammit
*insert autocomplete complaints*
*insert autocomplete complaints*
This post was edited on 8/28/16 at 10:58 am
Posted on 8/28/16 at 11:06 am to Volvagia
quote:
But the problem with it (which they somewhat address) is the same issue as the OP but on a smaller scale: Even hydrogen atoms can start cause physical damage at relativistic speeds
What would the impact of a single hydrogen atom be on an interstellar probe? (I could look up the formulas and crunch the numbers but I'm lazy.)
Posted on 8/28/16 at 11:22 am to Bestbank Tiger
Not sure
Upon further reading however it seems my original statement was false. Case of science fiction blurring with science fact unfortunately.
Imagined the impacts do be individually inconsequential, but would introduce stresses to the craft by repeated bombardment.
But it turns out to not really be true.
My bad.
Upon further reading however it seems my original statement was false. Case of science fiction blurring with science fact unfortunately.
Imagined the impacts do be individually inconsequential, but would introduce stresses to the craft by repeated bombardment.
But it turns out to not really be true.
My bad.
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