Science Fiction Dictionary
A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z

Home | Dictionary | Timeline | New

First Crewless Ship? Umm...

Elon Musk destroyed with just three letters this past week, when Norwegian-built Yara Birkeland will use GPS, radar, cameras, and sensors to navigate itself around other boat traffic and dock on its own. As reported in the Wall Street Journal, it was the "world’s first crewless, automated" ship.

Umm...

As fans of SpaceX know,

There have been three separate landing ships developed by SpaceX. The concept of an “Autonomous Spaceport Drone Ship” harks back to Elon Musk’s plans for “creating a paradigm shift in the traditional approach for reusing rocket hardware” in 2009, but the contract for a refitted barge was officially announced in 2014.

The large, flat surface of the ocean barge and the ability to transport heavy payloads are necessary for the high-velocity landings of the Faclon 9 rocket. SpaceX refits the barge platforms with an extended platform measuring 170 feet by 300 feet to facilitate the 18 foot span of the landing legs and the rocket’s support supplies. The first ship featured extended wings and blast walls, but the current models no longer have these features.

According to NASA, these Marmac autonomous drone ships are outfitted with four diesel-powered azimuth thruster engines which can pivot horizontally, removing the need for a ship rudder and offering better maneuverability with a complete 360 degree range of motion for the ship controls. It was originally reported that these thrusters help hold the drone ship position within three meters of accuracy. The engines are supplied by marine equipment manufacturer Thrustmaster.

Via Verge and FoxTrotAlpha.

Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 7/22/2017)

| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |

Would you like to contribute a story tip? It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add it here.

Comment/Join discussion ( 0 )

Related News Stories - (" Robotics ")

Tactile Skin Supplier Map
'What strange sensitivity! What an amazing development of science was manifested in every move and act and word of this Robot!' - Ray Cummings, 1931.

Robot Bees 3D Printed By Festo
'At first I was struck by the large size of these bees..' - Ernst Junger, 1957.

DIY Robot Scorpion Crushes It
'...it raised its front end off the ground and waved its antennae at them, then raised one armoured claw as if to snip them out of the sky.' - Neal Asher, 2008.

How To Settle An Argument Between Two Robots
'Henry... assumed the curious absent look of a robot talking on the TBR circuits.' - Frederik Pohl, 1954

	Web TechNovelgy.com

Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.

Science Fiction Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's   1950's
1960's   1970's
1980's   1990's
2000's   2010's

Current News

Tactile Skin Supplier Map
'What strange sensitivity! What an amazing development of science was manifested in every move and act and word of this Robot!'

Flock Stymied By 'Adversarial Fashion'
'Forget the head atop it, the legs below, feet, arms, hands. It compels erasure.'

Orb Nomad Zero-Emission Electric Aircraft
'That explains how it was so easy for me to remain motionless in midair or to perch on a flagpole in imitation of a giant bird, even in the windy city of Chicago.'

ICE Buys Shock Gloves Like Batman's
What else is the Caped Crusader using?

Factories In The Sky Will Surpass Those Of Earth
'The thirty-odd miles of The Factory’s circumference...'

Sleeper Drones Lie in Wait
'Wandering mines, you took them out on the edge of the desert, set them down and activated them.'

Warfare Goes Underground In Ukraine
'Once in the very first weeks of the war, before everyone had been evacuated from the surface...'

3D Printed Organs From Space
'For a while your colonists will have to come up to the [orbital] Hospital...'

Robot Bees 3D Printed By Festo
'At first I was struck by the large size of these bees..'

DIY Robot Scorpion Crushes It
'...it raised its front end off the ground and waved its antennae at them, then raised one armoured claw as if to snip them out of the sky.'

How To Settle An Argument Between Two Robots
'Henry... assumed the curious absent look of a robot talking on the TBR circuits.'

The Wind Phone Calls Those Who Have Passed On
'Only I heard that!'

Don't Want To Wear A TIght Shiny Bodysuit?
'He looked a good bit like an elderly, fat beetle.'

Light Society: Simulates Earth-Scale Society With A Billion AI Agents
'The king, an old hand in the running of tyrannies, instantly grasped the directions...'

Satyress Centaur Robot Horror Reminds Everyone Of Something
'Fess was very dutiful'

When Colds Threaten You Can't Do This - Or Can You?
'...a hemispherical force field enclosing his head.'

More SF in the News Stories

More Beyond Technovelgy science news stories