Open AccessShields for the starship Enterprise
Author(s) -
Bamford Ruth,
Bingham Robert,
Hapgood Mike
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
astronomy & geophysics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.168
H-Index - 22
eISSN - 1468-4004
pISSN - 1366-8781
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-4004.2007.48618.x
Subject(s) - shields , simplicity , spacecraft , electromagnetic shielding , nothing , magnetosphere , aerospace engineering , aeronautics , space (punctuation) , engineering , computer science , physics , electrical engineering , epistemology , plasma , philosophy , quantum mechanics , operating system
A renewed interest in human space exploration demands renewed care for the safety of astronauts venturing far from Earth's protective magnetosphere. Here we assess possible mechanisms for the active shielding of a spacecraft, with consideration of scale, effectiveness and power use. Although nothing yet exists to match the apparent simplicity and effectiveness of the shields shown on Star Trek, the physics of plasmas demonstrates that some useful form of shielding should be possible in the next few decades