A starship is a theoretical spacecraft designed for traveling between the stars, as opposed to a vehicle designed for orbital spaceflight or interplanetary travel. A spacecraft is a Vehicle or machine designed for Spaceflight. Interstellar space travel is unmanned or manned Travel between Stars The concept of interstellar travel in Starships is a staple in Science fiction An orbital spaceflight (or orbital flight is a Spaceflight in which a Spacecraft is placed on a trajectory where it could remain in space for at least
The term is mostly found in science fiction, as humanity has not yet constructed such vehicles (while the Voyager and Pioneer probes have traveled into local interstellar space, they are not generally considered starships, mainly because they are both unpowered and unmanned). See also Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. The Voyager program consists of a pair of unmanned scientific probes Voyager 1 and The US Pioneer program of Unmanned space missions was designed for planetary exploration However, exploratory engineering has been undertaken on several preliminary designs and feasibility studies for starships that could be built with modern technology or technology thought to be available in the near future. Exploratory engineering is a term coined by K Eric Drexler to describe the process of designing and analyzing detailed hypothetical models of systems that are not feasible with " Feasibility Study " is also the title of an episode from The Outer Limits television show For examples of such studies, see Project Daedalus, Project Orion, and Project Longshot. Project Daedalus was a study conducted between 1973 and 1978 by the British Interplanetary Society to design a plausible interstellar Unmanned spacecraft Project Orion was the first engineering design study of a Spacecraft powered by Nuclear pulse propulsion, an idea first proposed by Stanisław Ulam Project Longshot is a design for an interstellar Spacecraft, an unmanned probe intended to fly to Alpha Centauri powered by Nuclear pulse propulsion.
Contents |
Fictional types
A common literary device is to posit a faster-than-light propulsion system (such as warp drive) or travel through hyperspace, although some starships may be outfitted for centuries-long journeys of slower-than-light travel. Spacecraft propulsion is any method used to change the velocity of Spacecraft and artificial Satellites There are many different methods Warp drive is a form of Faster-than-light propulsion in the Fictional universe of Star Trek, capable of propelling spacecraft or objects to many multiples Hyperspace is a fictional Plot device sometimes used in Science fiction. A century (from the Latin centum, meaning one hundred is One hundred consecutive Years Centuries are numbered ordinally (e Other designs posit a way to boost the ship to near-lightspeed, allowing relatively "quick" travel (i. e. decades, not centuries) to nearer stars. This results in a general categorization of the kinds of starships:
- Sleeper ships, which put their passengers into stasis during a long trip. A sleeper ship is a hypothetical type of manned spaceship in which most or all of the crew spends the journey in some form of Hibernation or Suspended animation Stasis (ˈsteɪsɪs or hypersleep, is a Science fiction concept akin to Suspended animation.
- Generation ships, where the destination will be reached by descendants of the original passengers. A generation ship is a hypothetical Starship that travels across great distances between stars at a speed much slower than that of light (see Interstellar travel
- Relativistic ships, taking advantage of time dilation at close-to-light-speeds, so long trips will seem much shorter (but still take the same amount of time for outside observers). This article discusses a concept in physics For the concept in sociology see Time displacement.
- Faster-than-light ships, which can move between places very quickly (transcending current understanding of physics or using interdimensional 'shortcuts').
Fictional elements
Certain common elements are found in most fiction that discusses starships.
Slower-than-light
- Fiction that discusses slower-than-light starships is relatively rare, since the time scales are so long. A generation ship is a hypothetical Starship that travels across great distances between stars at a speed much slower than that of light (see Interstellar travel Instead of describing the interaction with the outside world, those fictions tend to focus on setting the whole story within the world of the (often very large) starship during its long travels. Sometimes the starship is a world, in perception or reality.
Faster-than-light
Travel at velocities near or greater than the speed of light is impossible according to the known laws of physics. A physical law or scientific law is a Scientific generalization based on empirical Observations of physical behavior (i Science fiction has, however, provided many examples.
- Such starships are typically large, multi-passenger vehicles (compared to starfighters). " Starfighter " is a Science fiction term used to describe small fast usually one-manned craft designed for armed combat (cf Starship) They range in size from small personal yachts and courier ships, up to vast bulk containers (used for intersystem shipping) and enormous warships.
- Starships are usually depicted as operating under laws and guidelines similar to real-world seagoing vessels. The primary reason for this concept (beyond artistic license) is that deep space is an even more hazardous environment than the open sea, and so extreme caution would have to be taken in all starship operations. A side effect of this is that spacegoing fleets, especially space militaries, are usually described as being organized similar to modern Earth navies.
- A starship may be fitted with a wide variety of engines, weapons, equipment, and internal compartments. Small freighters used for smuggling are typically fast, modified to avoid detection, are often heavily armed, and may have secret holds for hiding contraband cargo. The English word contraband, reported in English since 1529 from Medieval French contrebande "a smuggling" derived via Italian contrabando from Latin Large container ships usually have little in the way of shielding or weaponry, but have huge, powerful engines necessary for moving vast quantities of cargo through (or between) star systems. An energy shield is a form of technology commonly found in Science fiction, but also in development for real-life space travel
- Passenger vessels, are often described as being similar to modern ocean liners, containing luxurious passenger cabins, gambling halls, showrooms, restaurants, and lounges. An ocean liner is a ship designed to transport people from one Seaport to another along regular long-distance Maritime routes according to a schedule Warships contain crew quarters, extensive weaponry and shielding, massive engines, sophisticated sensor and communications arrays, and usually a detachment of non-naval Marine-like soldiers trained in assaulting and capturing enemy spacecraft, targets on planetary surfaces, or both. A sensor is a device that measures a physical quantity and converts it into a signal which can be read by an observer or by an instrument
Exceptions
- Exceedingly large spacegoing craft (for example the Death Star of the Star Wars universe) are typically not referred to as 'starships' (but see 'slower-than-light ships' above). The Death Star is a Fictional Space station and Superweapon appearing in the Star Wars movies and expanded universe. Star Wars is an epic Space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas during the 1970s and significantly expanded Terms like (artificial) planetoid may be considered to be more accurate. Minor planet is a term used since the 19th century to describe objects such as Asteroids that are in Orbit around the Sun but are not Planets
- Space stations and other structures intended to orbit a celestial body or serve as a point of contact / maintenance / docking station for other ships are not usually called starships, even if they can move under their own power. A space station is an artificial structure designed for Humans to live in Outer space. A space dock is a (currently fictional type of ' Dry dock ' for Spaceships or Starships However concept work has been undertaken on real space dock facilities
Fictional examples
The following is a listing of some of the most widely known vessels in various science fiction franchises:
Individual ships
Groups of ships
|
|
See also
- Bioship
- Intergalactic travel
- Interstellar travel
- List of fictional spaceships
- Space battleship
- Space shuttle
- Spacecraft
- Unidentified flying object (UFO)
External links
- CineSpaceships (database of spaceships in movies)
- Starship Dimensions (to-scale size comparisons)
- Starship Size Comparison Chart 1 (Dan Carlson, 13 July 2003)
- Starship Size Comparison Chart 2 (Dan Carlson, 30 October 2003)
- Starship Names (a Sci-Fi wiki article, outside of Wikipedia)
Dictionary
starship
-noun
- A type of spacecraft capable of traveling to the solar systems of other stars
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic