starship-design: Re: Light RamScoop?

[TLG.van.der.Linden@tip.nl (Timothy van der Linden)]

To Kelly

>A thought.  Long ago, we were discusing Ramscoops.  Eiather for ram fussion
>systems, or ram augmented systems.  The later could use interstallar dust
>to augment the reaction mass.  At the time we figured that any physical
>scoop would weigh more then the material it scooped up, and ran into papers
>(Heppinhimer wrote one) that suggested that the the drag from a magnetic
>scoop would be greater than the thrust.
>
>What about light scoops?  Could we use lasers reflected off of outriding
>light sails?  The sails would need to tack back and forth on the beem.  But
>could reflect the beam back in toward the line of flight.  Pushing material
>inward toward a smaller scoop.  This would seem to avoid the drag problem,
>but I've no idea if they would be worth the trouble.

Where does the laser come from? If it comes from the ship, it will push the
ship back.

At the moment I can't ask more detailed questions, since I'm not 100% sure
of the configuration.
For example how are you going to "tack the sail back to the ship"?


Tim