starship-design: Re: Anti-matter/Matter Conversion Starship Propuslion

[Kelly St <KellySt@aol.com>]

In a message dated 3/5/98 3:21:51 PM, you wrote:

>NASA has recently reported  massive amounts of gamma radiation being
>formed by emission of positron jets from the central black hole of our
>Milky Way galaxy. There seem to be plenty of these anti-electrons in
>interstellar space which couLd  be  used  for fuel by the spaceship
>obviating the need for their synthesis and could
>be made to react with electrons in / on  the spaceship  to produce gamma
>radiation for propulsion. The enormous energy released by
>thiis matter to photon conversion should be sufficiient  to achieve
>superluminal velocity by the spaceship overcoming space medium friction
>when crossing the "Light  Barrier". Photons of light cannot traverse
>matter-free
>space at velocitiiiies greater than "c" because
>they proceed in a conservaition of momentum fashion  and are not
>receiving accelerating impulses after their initial emission except when
>passing nearby massive celesttial bodies (i.e. gravitational impulses).
>It would seem that anti-matter/matter reaction propulsion would be
>especially useful for superluminal flight through interstellr space. A
>reply from you would be very much appreciated.  s/s      Christopher F.
>Dessauer, Space Systems Integration Engineer, formerly Chief, Payload
>Integration, Titan III Space Lauch System Program Office, USAF Space and
>Missile Systems Organization, LA AF Station,Calif. Mailing address: MSC
>126,HC-01,Box 2000, Tucson,AZ 85736,Tel.(520) 822-1708

Sorry you've missed the boat in several points.  There no reason to think
mater/anti-mater conversion would allow faster then light travel.  It would
produce a lot of energy, but with conventional phyisics that isn't enough to
overcome the infinate energy to travel at the "Light  Barrier".   Nor is the
sighting of anti-mater in the center of the galaxy proof that anti-mater would
be avalibe in usable quantitys in our area of the galaxy.

Kelly Starks