Re:Relativistic Spaceship
by defrost on Tuesday February 06, 2024 @02:13AM
(#39271667)
More like bridges and skyscrapers, perhaps with an ablating sheild at the lead end, maybe an electromagnetic field to divert particles away.
If the thrust is high enough, a tenth of a G to 1.5 maybe, the ship has to "stand up" on the thrusting engine in the same manner as a building must stand up over it's footprint, supporting itself against the force of (artifical) gravity.
If it's higher thrust (as the human meatsacks are suspended in a fluid they've also swallowed ??) then the ship has to look even more like a heavy load brutilist building.
Re:Relativistic Spaceship
by gattr on Tuesday February 06, 2024 @07:18AM
(#39273433)
It's more stable (and structurally leaner, I think) to instead have the engines at the front in tractor configuration, as in the interstellar ships in Avatar movies.
If the thrust is high enough, a tenth of a G to 1.5 maybe, the ship has to "stand up" on the thrusting engine in the same manner as a building must stand up over it's footprint, supporting itself against the force of (artifical) gravity.
If it's higher thrust (as the human meatsacks are suspended in a fluid they've also swallowed ??) then the ship has to look even more like a heavy load brutilist building.