• Plans to Build a Real, Burj-Dubai-Sized Starship Enterprise in 20 Years
    88 replies, posted
[QUOTE]The year 2245 is just too distant — we should build and commission a real USS Enterprise right now, cracking the champagne across her hull within 20 years, according to an enterprising engineer. The gigantic ship would use ion propulsion, powered by a 1.5-GW nuclear reactor, and could reach Mars in three months and the moon in three days. Its 0.3-mile-diameter, magnetically suspended gravity wheel spinning at 2 RPM would provide 1G of gravity, and the thing looks just like the "Star Trek" ship of lore. This project is the brainchild of an engineer who calls himself BTE Dan. As in “Build The Enterprise,” which is also the name of his brand-new website. “We have the technological reach to build the first generation of the spaceship known as the USS Enterprise – so let’s do it,” BTE Dan writes. He even sifts through the federal budget and proposes tax hikes and spending cuts to cover the $1 trillion cost. Though the "Star Trek" connection lends the project an air of sci-fi fun, BTE Dan is hardly the only engineer dreaming up a next-generation spaceship to the stars. DARPA's 100-Year Starship project is designed partly to foster ideas just like this one, from a project planning roadmap to a real ship. The so-called Gen1 Enterprise would be built in space and would serve a triple function, as a space station, spaceport and traveling spaceship “all in one!” BTE Dan says. It won’t cruise the galaxy at light speed, unfortunately, but it could explore new worlds right in our own neighborhood, providing a constant acceleration to reach distant targets much more quickly. Its first missions would be to the moon, Venus, Mars and maybe Europa. Universe Today notes the ship’s onboard laser would be used to sear through the moon’s ice crust to allow a ship to drop into its oceans. Three additional nuclear reactors would provide electricity for this laser and other ship needs. BTE Dan also crunched some numbers to prove he’s really serious. He proposes a matrix of tax increases and budget cuts in defense, health and human services, housing and urban development, education, energy and more. But he promises they will be small cuts and small tax increases, Universe Today notes. “These changes to spending and taxes will not sink the republic,” BuildTheEnterprise.org reads. BTE Dan identifies himself as a “systems engineer and electrical engineer who has worked at a Fortune 500 company for the past 30 years,” Universe Today says. He is on Twitter as @BTEDan and he says he’s setting up a Facebook page where you can all go and like his project. His website keeps crashing, but we’ll let you know if we hear back from him. [img]http://www.popsci.com/files/imagecache/article_image_large/articles/enterprise.png[/img] [img]http://www.popsci.com/files/imagecache/article_image_large/articles/USS-Enterprise-size-comparisons.png[/img][/QUOTE] Source: [url]http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2012-05/build-real-starship-enterprise-make-it-so-ambitious-engineer-says[/url]
This is such a bad idea I'm not even sure it needs to be stated. The design is just plain impractical. It would need a much larger fuel capacity for any real missions, and we have no infrastructure to support such an absurd design. Of course there's also a load of structural challenges involved to build such a monumentally stupid design (why are the warp nacelles part of the design? there's no reason for all of that supporting structure.).
[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;36011988][IMG]http://www.popsci.com/files/imagecache/article_image_large/articles/USS-Enterprise-size-comparisons.png[/IMG]Source: [URL]http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2012-05/build-real-starship-enterprise-make-it-so-ambitious-engineer-says[/URL][/QUOTE] [IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/USS-Enterprise-size-comparisons.png[/IMG] Fixed. [highlight](User was banned for this post ("Insensitive / Dumb" - Craptasket))[/highlight]
[QUOTE=FreeHat;36012302][IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/USS-Enterprise-size-comparisons.png[/IMG] Fixed.[/QUOTE] Was that really necessary?
Was that really necessary. Damn, ninja'd.
[QUOTE=FreeHat;36012302][IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/USS-Enterprise-size-comparisons.png[/IMG] Fixed.[/QUOTE] thats an asshole thing to do man also, because i say its an asshole thing doesn't mean i have no sense of humor i dont imply i find this funny though
They need to start building X-Wings instead.
[QUOTE=FreeHat;36012302][IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/USS-Enterprise-size-comparisons.png[/IMG] Fixed.[/QUOTE] Am I a bad person for laughing?
[QUOTE=FreeHat;36012302][IMG]http://filesmelt.com/dl/USS-Enterprise-size-comparisons.png[/IMG] Fixed.[/QUOTE] hehe i see what you did there!!
[quote]Babbys said: Was that really necessary? thats an asshole thing to do man [/quote] Y'all jus' mad I did it first.
You guys have no sense of humor
[video=youtube;IRsPheErBj8]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRsPheErBj8[/video]
Looks like my father was right after all, last month or 2 months ago i think it was we where talking about how we would see space ships like this one day.
I actually find this extremely interesting. While there are probably more efficient designs he has a very valid point. Instead of fucking around on Earth we NEED to start developing our space capabilities. Having a ship that could reach Mars in 3 months would be a big boost to that, and there's no reason we can't work towards it as a whole.
[QUOTE=Ven Kaeo;36012410]I actually find this extremely interesting. While there are probably more efficient designs he has a very valid point. Instead of fucking around on Earth we NEED to start developing our space capabilities. Having a ship that could reach Mars in 3 months would be a big boost to that, and there's no reason we can't work towards it as a whole.[/QUOTE] We don't "need" to start developing space capabilities. It would be awesome, but right now, it's not a real necessity to humanity.
[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;36012432]We don't "need" to start developing space capabilities. It would be awesome, but right now, it's not a real necessity to humanity.[/QUOTE] Thats like saying electricity or cars wasn't a real necessity when it was invented/ we need progress
[QUOTE=FreeHat;36012369]Y'all jus' mad I did it first.[/QUOTE] sorry no it was stupid
[QUOTE]BTE Dan identifies himself as a “systems engineer and electrical engineer who has worked at a Fortune 500 company for the past 30 years,”[/QUOTE] Yeah this basically means anything he says is a load of shit. Popsci as a source should be banned for "reporting" on any stupid thing some random motherfucker with a STEM degree says. This is the science equivalent of Kotaku.
[QUOTE=DarkSiper;36012380]You guys have no sense of humor[/QUOTE] hehe, thousands of people died. funny.
Predicting future technology is a great way to become a joke. [img]http://www.allcoolandnew.com/library/194194d6b1542f16bd.jpg[/img]
An exact full-scale replica of the Enterprise would be awesome as a stationary building.
it makes me wonder how the real spaceship designs will look like in the future if you shave off all the cool and flashy sci-fi designs with absolutely no purpose. I mean when the first airplane took off, the people there probably thought that this is what our planes will look like for all eternity. but then enter the science of aerodynamics, jet engine and various other laws. I would imagine that a space faring spaceship will have a lot more freedom of design but, when it comes to entering other planets atmospheres, will we have to design a new spaceship for every different planet that we decide to land on due to the many differences between the planets. Even if we're talking about a pure space faring ship floating in no gravity without limitations to size or design i would imagine that less stuff sticking out everywhere is best! imagine a submarine in space!
[QUOTE=GreenLeaf;36013701]it makes me wonder how the real spaceship designs will look like in the future if you shave off all the cool and flashy sci-fi designs with absolutely no purpose. I mean when the first airplane took off, the people there probably thought that this is what our planes will look like for all eternity. but then enter the science of aerodynamics, jet engine and various other laws. I would imagine that a space faring spaceship will have a lot more freedom of design but, when it comes to entering other planets atmospheres, will we have to design a new spaceship for every different planet that we decide to land on due to the many differences between the planets. Even if we're talking about a pure space faring ship floating in no gravity without limitations to size or design i would imagine that less stuff sticking out everywhere is best! imagine a submarine in space![/QUOTE] Considering the sheer fucking [b]size[/b] of the Enterprise, I don't even want to think about the kind of resources that would go into building a full-sized replica of the damn thing with Earth acting as the only source of materials. Good Christ, the cost. [b]THE COST[/b]. That's like the GDP of half of Africa all in one go. [editline]19th May 2012[/editline] Although considering the fact that she's not meant to enter an atmosphere, a reproduced Enterprise would make for a good colonization ship. I mean, all of that sexy, sexy storage space and those docking platforms, aye?
Do they [B]really[/B] need that laser?
I laughed at freehat's "change" more than in 5 pages of lmao pics. On another note dubai is batshit insane why not just use cubes! Like in minecraft hurrdurr.
Maybe it would be a better idea to create something like this after we started mining in space.
All this is to me, is a horrendous waste of time, resources and money that could be put into making a ship that would be purpose built for its job.
Waste of resources and man-power. I mean it's looks ugly as hell and frail as fuck. We'd be better off building a space station bit by bit, and building spaceships on the station, again bit by bit. And the cost of these things wouldn't even be so bad if so much money and resources weren't put into kind of stupid causes, and those could be just about anything ranging from a bad-choice PC hardware to a cheap hat rack that breaks. It's all about channeling money into things that we benefit from the most.
Speaking of building ships in space using resources mined in space, has anyone ever thought about how manufacturing in space would work? in space!
Yeah manufacturing in space would work really well, wouldn't have to use as much energy to put the ship together because it's microgravity so moving parts would be easier, and when you put two pieces of exposed metal together they instantly fuse together, as long as they were manufactured in space (on earth the oxygen will create a thin metal oxide layer that prevents this effect from taking place.)
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