In Star Trek lore, the first Starship Enterprise will be built by the year 2245. But today, an engineer has proposed — and outlined in meticulous detail — building a full-sized, ion-powered version of the Enterprise complete with 1G of gravity on board, and says it could be done with current technology, within 20 years.
"We have the technological reach to build the first generation of the spaceship known as the USS Enterprise — so let's do it," writes the curator of the Build The Enterprise website, who goes by the name of BTE Dan.
This "Gen1" Enterprise could get to Mars in 90 days, to the moon in three, and "could hop from planet to planet dropping off robotic probes of all sorts en masse — rovers, special-built planes and satellites,” BTE Dan says.
Scientists these days... must have been a huge "Star Trek" fanatic!
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 1:30 pm
by The Invisible
ion-powered version
Wondering how that works.
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 6:34 pm
by woutR
seems legit
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 6:38 pm
by Gaigemasta
I just knew this was a *Blackfox thread
and meh, extremely doubt it
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 6:52 pm
by lyn
...and spreading out budget cuts to areas like defense, health and human services, housing and urban development, education and energy...
The U.S. budget is already stretched thin as it is. It's gonna take private companies like SpaceX to actually do this, or a combination of countries like they did on the ISS.
But it does seem like a cool idea being a Trekker and all.
..Enterprise-class ship..
Consitution class...
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 7:28 pm
by *BlackFox
lyn wrote:But it does seem like a cool idea being a Trekker and all.
I thought it was a crazy idea!
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 7:34 pm
by EvGa
The Invisible wrote:
ion-powered version
Wondering how that works.
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 2:35 am
by dom
lyn wrote:
...and spreading out budget cuts to areas like defense, health and human services, housing and urban development, education and energy...
The U.S. budget is already stretched thin as it is. It's gonna take private companies like SpaceX to actually do this, or a combination of countries like they did on the ISS.
But it does seem like a cool idea being a Trekker and all.
Not really. Putting money into NASA and the space sector is how you create jobs (think of all the jobs needed to support that industry: all the people in financing, the scientists, the people building the components, the people mining and processing the resources, the people that have to open stores and build homes for the miners, people to construct the buildings, the teachers needed to teach students, etc. etc.) and innovate. Innovation is what leads to jobs that cannot be shipped overseas.
The entire 50 year NASA budget represents only 2 years of the Military budget. Consider all that they have done and that they were able to go to the moon.
Watch it all (Bill Nye bonus):
Code: Select all
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 2:24 pm
by lyn
Yeah, that's true. But will the U.S. Congress do it? I don't think so. They can't even agree on basic human needs like health care and women's rights like birth control and equal pay, much less something like this. (Sorry for getting a little political) I know if this project actually starts, it'd create jobs and innovation, but they need to get off their arse and actually do something. I'd like to see it. But if I remember, they also cut NASA's budget. I think their director said they could've kept the shuttles going for at least a few more years, at least till a replacement. But you are right dom, just up to Congress, like Neil says, they just don't care really, give it to the banks. ( By the way Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Bill Nye are my favourites, used to watch Bill Nye the Science Guy when I was younger. =) )
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 3:45 pm
by marijnz0r
EvGa wrote:
The Invisible wrote:
ion-powered version
Wondering how that works.
Wikipedia: " ... thrust level of 5 N. "
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Wed May 16, 2012 12:48 am
by EvGa
I know, the VASMIR and ion propulsion in general is neither new, exciting, or promising. I was just giving him an example of ion propulsion.
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Wed May 16, 2012 6:22 am
by Nick Invaders
As much as I want it to happen...I don't see it happening any time soon >.<
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Wed May 16, 2012 6:53 pm
by *BlackFox
Will space travel ever be possible?
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Thu May 17, 2012 6:45 am
by Isis
*BlackFox wrote:Will space travel ever be possible?
Well obviously, because it's already happened...
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Thu May 17, 2012 10:08 am
by *BlackFox
Isis wrote:Well obviously, because it's already happened...
But damn.. I haven't seen any "Starship's" out there.
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Thu May 17, 2012 5:41 pm
by Macs
woutR wrote:seems legit
LOL
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Fri May 18, 2012 9:42 pm
by Krevidy
5N thrust Ion engines now, remember the 64kb hdd's 2 decades ago, well we're on 1/2 Terabytes already. And doubling every 2 years, I want to see those Ion engines in 20 years. This article might in fact be very plausible.
Lets hope so, this would really improve our civilisation.
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Sat May 19, 2012 7:01 pm
by *BlackFox
Krevidy wrote:Lets hope so, this would really improve our civilisation.
How.. exactly, would this improve our civilisation?
Re: Starship Enterprise "Can Be Built In 20 Years"
Posted: Sat May 19, 2012 7:24 pm
by MrJoey
marijnz0r wrote:
EvGa wrote:
The Invisible wrote:Wondering how that works.
Wikipedia: " ... thrust level of 5 N. "
Spoiler!
Can't believe nobody has said this already, but...
The U.S. budget is already stretched thin as it is. It's gonna take private companies like SpaceX to actually do this, or a combination of countries like they did on the ISS.