Impulse drive

Impulse drive
Plot element from the Star Trek franchise
First appearance Star Trek: The Original Series
Created by Gene Roddenberry
Genre Science fiction
In-story information
Type Propulsion system
Function Allows rapid interplanetary travel

In the fictional Star Trek universe, the impulse drive is the method of propulsion that starships and other spacecraft use when they are travelling below the speed of light.[1] Typically powered by deuterium fusion reactors, impulse engines let ships travel interplanetary distances readily. For example, Starfleet Academy cadets use impulse engines when flying from Earth to Saturn and back.

There are three practical challenges surrounding impulse drive design: acceleration, time dilation and energy conservation. In the show, inertial dampers compensate for acceleration. These hypothetical devices would have to be set so that the propellant regained its inertia after leaving the craft otherwise the drive would be ineffective.[2] Time dilation would become noticeable at appreciable fractions of the speed of light. Regarding energy conservation, the television series and books offer two explanations:

Impulse drives are also found in the online space simulation MMORPG, Ogame.

References

  1. ^ Lawrence Krauss (20 April 1996), "Illogical Captain...", New Scientist (2026): 24, http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg15020263.900-illogical-captain.html 
  2. ^ Marc G. Millis (2007) (PDF), Energy Considerations of Hypothetical Space Drives, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, pp. 3, http://ntrs.nasa.gov/archive/nasa/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov/20070031912_2007031208.pdf 

See also