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Science fiction TV shows, books and movies almost always take place in the future, and
what is the most common setting of any form of media taking place in the future? Space
(the final frontier)! And what could be a better symbol of space Sci-Fi than the star
ship, but what is a star ship? [Intro]
Star ships are theoretical spacecrafts made to take humans to other solar systems, rather
than to other planets. So, there are two important things to remember; they have to be interstellar
traveling and carry intelligent life, wether it be Humans, Klingons, Vulcans, Romulans,
or whatever. This means that the U.S.S. Enterprise from Star Trek certainly is a star ship, which
is good because it's one of the most famous star ships ever imagined, however the Pegasus
from BBC's Space Odyssey: Voyage to the Planets is not, even though it carries five humans
on a six-year mission throughout the solar system and is a mile long, but it could never
to to other star systems. So just how possible are star ships? Well,
there are multiple requirements we must note, but also some we must not because it would
still be considered a star ship without it. First, it needs to be able to escape the gravitational
influence of the home star, or else it would not be able to reach any other star systems.
Piloting a ship that's supposed to be a star ship, but running out of fuel before stellar
escape is kind of like piloting a plane, but running out of fuel before you take off. They
also need to carry an intelligent life form, meaning Voyager cannot be a star ship, but
this Voyager certainly can, however, one of the things you don't need is warp speed, you
could use cryonic (also incorrectly known as cryogenic) technology, like the Jupiter
2 from Lost in Space. Star ships will also need protection from foreign objects, including
interstellar radiation. However, star ships do not need weapons, unless Romulans do exist.
Lastly, all star ships need to get up to an optimal speed, but they don't need constant
thrust. This sounds crazy, but remember, there is no drag force in space. NASA has already
done this several times when launching rovers, they're just launched and just coast through
space for 7 months. In fact, Voyager 1 has been quietly coasting through space since
1977, AND IT IS IN INTERSTELLAR SPACE NOW! Now, if we had a ship with warp capability
and long-range weapons, for instance, the Enterprise, would anything launched from the
phasers actually go forwards and hit the targets? No. In fact, the only ship it would injure
would be itself, and that is the same for EVERY star ship with warp capability, not
just the Federation ships. Now, the projectile would be launched from the gun just like normal,
but it would quickly go backwards relative to the ship. So, if you were traveling in
the other ship, I guess you'll have a chance to live long and prosper.
Thank you for watching this video! Be sure to set YouTube to subscribe! Also, please
set this video on a course to your friends at warp factor 1 (by sharing it with them).
Live long and prosper.