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"As the rate of technological development speeds up, the gap between science fiction and what we’re living now is getting narrower all the time."
- Richard Morgan
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| Negative Matter Space Drive | ||
| A reactionless space drive using negative matter. |
Negative matter has some unusual properties:
If there were such a thing, you might be able to use it to propel a space ship...
"Since the ball is charged," Philippe answered, "it's easy to push it by charging up a metal plate placed near it. Of course, being negative matter, when you push it, it comes toward you.."
| "In the experiment Hiroshi did," Philippe went on, "he used a metal plate with a negative electric charge so it would attract the positive electric charge of the ball. The ball pulled away in the opposite direction, pulling the test apparatus, the power supply, and Hiroshi along with it. When Hiroshi saw what was happening, he quickly turned the field off. He then had to reverse the field and push on the ball for a while to bring it to a halt again."
"It was just as Steve predicted," said Jim in awe. "A true reactionless space drive." "A space drive?" exclaimed Randy in amazement. "That is correct," said Philippe, his voice deepening as his face turned deadly serious. "When that ball of negative matter was pulling Hiroshi and his test apparatus along, there was nothing going in the opposite direction. There was no reaction mass and no energy source involved, but they moved nevertheless. That means a large enough negative-matter ball electrostatically coupled to a positive-matter spacecraft can propel the spacecraft at any acceleration the crew can stand for as long as you want.. Flight to the stars at near light speed is no longer a dream . . ." |
| Technovelgy from Timemaster,
by Robert Forward. Published by Tom Doherty Associates in 1992 Additional resources -
|
Compare to cavorite from The First Men in the Moon (1901) by H.G. Wells, the gravity web from Whipping Star (1969) by Frank Herbert, the Granton motor from Into the Meteorite Orbit (1933) by Frank K. Kelly and Apergy from Across the Zodiac (1880) by Percy Greg.
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and Technology from Timemaster
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and Technology by Robert Forward
Tech news articles related to Timemaster
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Negative Matter Space Drive-related
news articles:
- Negative Matter Fluid Theorized In New Paper
| Mechazilla Arms Catch A Falling Starship, But Check Out SF Landing-ARMS |
| Solar-Powered Space Trains On The Moon |
| JWST Finds Bucking Centaur 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann 1 |
| First Trips To Mars Announced By Elon Musk |
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'...the rocket’s landing-arms automatically unfolded.'
'...points and patches of light... sliding all over their faces in a programmed manner that had been designed to foil facial recognition systems.'
'...the combined Wind-Suncatcher, like a spray of tulips mounted fanwise.'
'I went to the control room where the three other men were manipulating their mechanical men.'
'The low-slung monorail car, straddling its single track, bored through the shadows on a slowly rising course.'
'It was a smooth ovoid floating a few inches from the floor...'
'... he thrust in his charging arm to replenish his store of energy.'
'...the terrible Jovian gravity that made each movement an effort.'
