Space travel (hijack/split from FTL travel)

[metacogitans]

So I don't have much of a background in physics, since I haven't had the opportunity to take it yet, but I'm really interested in theoretical FTL methods.

 

So my question is- What would it take for some sort of spacecraft to accomplish the speed of light or faster. I understand and methods are probably theoretical I just don't understand the math involved just yet, so I'm hoping for some clarification.

 

The idea I had for this was to 'cheat' the geometry of how waves accelerate a particle by setting up an nano-apparatus which would distribute absorbed inertia such that the apparatus continuously accelerates into more waves of force.

If possible, the major drawback would be that it wouldn't be able to travel in a straight line, and how it would fit into designs above the nanoscale is a head-scratcher.

 

Another idea I had for long distance space travel (maybe not FTL, but relativistic speeds) would be to set up a solar-sail turbine with sort of a screw-like shape, which also has a strong electrical current running through it; as the solar sail reaches a relativistic threshold where it can no longer provide sufficient acceleration, the electrical current would be arranged such that the electrons end up interacting with their own electromagnetic field producing propulsion from the electrons accelerating themselves basically. Hitting the brakes would be as simple as flipping a switch to change which direction the electrical current flows through the solar turbine. It would definitely be cool to send a probe to Alpha Centauri with only a 6-7 year travel time.

Edited November 17, 2016 by metacogitans

[swansont]

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Moderator Note

Non-mainstream/untested ideas belong in the speculations section, rather than hijacking discussions in the main forums.

[metacogitans]

I just thought of some more key parts of the design I mentioned earlier:

 

So in the rear of the craft is a solar sail with a sort of twisting, winged screwdriver shape (sort of like an ice auger ). The solar sail spins faster the more it is accelerated by solar radiation.

 

Now, this is the smart part: an electrical current is running through the solar sail. Once the solar sail is spinning fast enough, the electrons in the current would interact with their own electromagnetic field which they had produced earlier (similar to how electrons interact with their own field to form interference fringes after passing through a double slit),

 

This means thrust is being produced by motion which the ship had already made.

 

Then, you're asking "what do I do about all that pesky 'space-time' in front of the ship", right? Well, since the structure of space-time is simply its contents, then displacing them aerodynamically is what is needed, but why just displace space-time when it could be harnessed for more thrust? Matter in front of the ship is diverted into 4 or more cylindrical drive chambers with electromagnet coils inside the wall of the cylinder, hooked up to the same circuit as the electrical current running through the solar sail, but in the opposite direction to complete the circuit! The wire coiling through the walls of the cylinder generates a current from passing space debris going through the drive; the electromagnet coiling also accelerates debris, creating a vacuum effect which pulls in even more debris faster.

Edited December 16, 2016 by metacogitans

[Dovahkiin789]

I just thought of some more key parts of a design:

 

So in the rear of the craft is a solar sail with a sort of twisting, winged screwdriver shapeshape (sort of like an ice auger ). The solar sail spins faster the more it is accelerated by solar radiation.

 

Now, this is the smart part: an electrical current is running through the solar sail. Once the solar sail is spinning fast enough, the electrons in the current would interact with their own electromagnetic field which they had produced earlier (similar to how electrons interact with their own field to form interference fringes after passing through a double slit),

 

This means thrust is being produced by motion which had already happened.

 

Then, you're asking "what do I do about all that pesky 'space-time' in front of the ship", right? Well, since the structure of space-time is simply its contents, then displacing them aerodynamically is what is needed, but why just displace space-time when it could be harnessed for more thrust? Matter in front of the ship is diverted into 4 or more cylindrical drive chambers with electromagnet coils inside the wall of the cylinder, hooked up to the same circuit as the electrical current running through the solar sail, but in the opposite direction to complete the circuit! The wire coiling through the walls of the cylinder generates a current from passing space debris going through the drive; the electromagnet coiling also accelerates debris, creating a vacuum effect which pulls in even more debris faster.

So would this go faster than light, or just be an alternative way of space travel? Is there also something that can back this up, I'm not an expert in any of this so if there is I'd be happy to know. Thanks

[metacogitans]

So would this go faster than light, or just be an alternative way of space travel? Is there also something that can back this up, I'm not an expert in any of this so if there is I'd be happy to know. Thanks

Alternative to space travel that would be virtually fuel-less; I'm not sure how fast it would go but if it can accelerate without fuel then I'm guessing it could go as fast as the structure of the ship could handle - maybe even getting up into relativistic speeds; 10-25%, maybe even 30-40% the speed of light. At those speeds though, it would have to emit strong magnetic fields ahead of its path to keep debris out of the way.

Edited December 16, 2016 by metacogitans