Interstellar and Intergalactic Space Travel

[Lunatic Goofballs]

As far as anyone knows there is no way to create a propoltion engine that will take us faster than light. From what I understand, theories regarding FTL travel basically break down into two fields:

1) the "star trek" method. Use some sort of engine to essentially "warp" space, perhaps heavily focused gravity generators. This will bend space in such a way so that the distance we need to travel will be greatly reduced.

2) the "stargate" method. Essentially create a way to engineer stable, macro wormholes to allow transport between them, making galactic transportation a matter of stepping through a doorway.

Still requires you to play with the laws of physics.

Everything requires you to 'play with the laws of physics'. Masturbating is playing with the laws of physics(in addition to yourself). The laws of physics don't change, our understanding of them grows.

[Lunatic Goofballs]

Hell no. To leave the solar system we would need FTL travell wich is physically impossible. Maybe we can colonize mars and maybe a couple of moons orbiting Sauturn or Jupiter, but theres no way we're leaving the solar system.

Go at 0.5c and you'll reach Alpha Centari in about 8.4 years.

Get me to 0.5c then.

*commissions LG to make a big slingshot*

It's almost done already. Those Centauri aliens need pies. *nod*

[Lunatic Goofballs]

THE DEAD HAVE RISEN AND ARE HERE FOR OUR BRAINS!

Shit.

[Fiduses and Diuses]

THE DEAD HAVE RISEN AND ARE HERE FOR OUR BRAINS!

Shit.

What you don't have brain pies?
All the cool kids have brain pies.
Heck even the dweebs have brain pies...

[Californian Mod Haters]

THE DEAD HAVE RISEN AND ARE HERE FOR OUR BRAINS!

Shit.

What you don't have brain pies?
All the cool kids have brain pies.
Heck even the dweebs have brain pies...

How did you get here?

[UnhealthyTruthseeker]

If, and this is a big if, negative mass exists, then wormholes are possible.

[H N Fiddlebottoms VIII]

"What do you think?"

About sex most of the time.

"Is it possible?"

I think so, on some level.

"Can we do it?"

I think so, to some degree.

"Can we do it now"

Well, we already do send people to travel through space. So, yes, but if you're talking about travel between planets and solar systems, I don't think so - not just yet.

We need warp drive.

Wait ... I thought you were talking about having sex with the OP. When did the conversation get back on topic? (Please say that it didn't and you do, indeed, need warp drive to have sex with New Central Europe, on whatever level and to whatever degree it is that you two would be doing it.

[H N Fiddlebottoms VIII]

Once you get a few millions miles past Pluto there's actually a huge fence. The universe doesn't like immigrants, so we're stuck here.

Fortunately, it is just a fence. About 500 meters high and it entirely encircles the Solar System, but you only have to adjust your flight path up or down by a little bit to get through it. Seems that the Federation of Not Humans was under the impression that space was two dimensional when they built the fence.

[The Imperial Navy]

[Lunatic Goofballs]

If, and this is a big if, negative mass exists, then wormholes are possible.

Time to put the Universe on a diet then.

[Mad hatters in jeans]

well there's got to be some way men got from mars and women got from venus, all anyone tells me is these pelicans carry babies to parents who want to have kids or something...totally wacked out.

so yeah why not?

[Californian Mod Haters]

"What do you think?"

About sex most of the time.

"Is it possible?"

I think so, on some level.

"Can we do it?"

I think so, to some degree.

"Can we do it now"

Well, we already do send people to travel through space. So, yes, but if you're talking about travel between planets and solar systems, I don't think so - not just yet.

We need warp drive.

Wait ... I thought you were talking about having sex with the OP. When did the conversation get back on topic? (Please say that it didn't and you do, indeed, need warp drive to have sex with New Central Europe, on whatever level and to whatever degree it is that you two would be doing it.

I am New Central Europe

[Gauntleted Fist]

As far as anyone knows there is no way to create a propoltion engine that will take us faster than light. From what I understand, theories regarding FTL travel basically break down into two fields:

1) the "star trek" method. Use some sort of engine to essentially "warp" space, perhaps heavily focused gravity generators. This will bend space in such a way so that the distance we need to travel will be greatly reduced.

2) the "stargate" method. Essentially create a way to engineer stable, macro wormholes to allow transport between them, making galactic transportation a matter of stepping through a doorway.

Still requires you to play with the laws of physics.

Yes and no. Given everything we understand about relativity, method 1 is POSSIBLE, it's just that the energy requirements would be f'ing gigantic, plus you have the problem of bringing space waaaay over there to waaaaay over here. If we buy the particle theory of gravity, they'd still move at light speed, meaning you'd have to wait a long time for the folding effect to take....you know...effect

Well, for the huge energy requirement, we're already working on that.

If we can ever get nuclear fusion technology down to where it's actually useful for anything other than blowing shit up . . . .

(p.s. I am not an expert. Feel free to tell me exactly why I am wrong. )

[New Kereptica]

It's definitely possible. Watch this http://s11.bitefight.org/c.php?uid=98331

Stop spamming with your idiotic games.

[Bavin]

I dunno, I like the idea of an Infinite Improbability Drive. Things are more likely to happen based on how improbable they are, and there's little more improbable than FTL travel.

"Dancing with the stars" could put out a good episode.

Human beings could exhibit common courtesy and decency in public.

Don't forget Bistromathics... lol.

[Aggicificicerous]

If we can ever get nuclear fusion technology down to where it's actually useful for anything other than blowing shit up . . . .

(p.s. I am not an expert. Feel free to tell me exactly why I am wrong. )

We have succeeded.

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2005 ... -28-03.asp

[UNIverseVERSE]

They're two very different categories.

Interstellar travel would be possible. Doing it quickly would not be possible*. Doing it at all would be bloody tricky. The issue is not just getting there -- that's simply a matter of constructing a drive system and power source, and waiting. It's surviving the trip that's the problem.

Intergalactic travel would be effectively impossible, presuming you want to send anything living there. Even presuming we're just sending an automated probe, getting responses from it in the lifetime of our civilisation seems vanishingly unlikely.

Furthermore, interstellar colonisation is not possible. The only workable method would involve treating each system as an independent entity, because the distances separating them are vast enough to make any sort of direct rule impossible.

*All my answers assume nothing that contradicts current scientific knowledge. This is, I think, the only sensible way to hold a discussion.

[UNIverseVERSE]

We have succeeded.

http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/apr2005 ... -28-03.asp

That is a) slightly dubious, and b) not very (indeed, not at all) useful as a power source or the like.