Re: Re: Re: The fuelsail is stupid (was starship-design: Hull Materials)

[kuo@bit.csc.lsu.edu (Isaac Kuo)]

KellySt@aol.com wrote:
>In a message dated 11/17/97 6:53:05 AM, kuo@bit.csc.lsu.edu wrote:
>>KellySt@aol.com wrote:
>>>>In a message dated 11/15/97 5:31:48 AM, kuo@bit.csc.lsu.edu wrote:

>>>>>>So there you have it.  If the fuel/sail concept is even possible,
>>>>>>there is no good reason to do it.  Even if the scoop I mentionned
>>>>>>weighed 10 _times_ as much as the payload, you'll probably save
>>>>>>in the cost of the laser more than you'll save in the cost of the
>>>>>>lithium.

>>>>In this design I assume that the ship itself has to maneuver in order
>>>>to catch the fuel packages.  I assume this requires 50% more fuel
>>>>just to catch the fuel packages!  And I assume the scoop used weighs
>>>>as much as the rest of the payload!

>>>>This increases the fuel requirements by a factor of 6.

>>>>However, considering the laser's cost is reduced by a factor of 100,
>>>>it's easily worth it.  Consider that the laser will weigh many
>>>>magnitudes more than the fueled starship in the fuel/sail design.

>>>Two assumptions I'm not comfortable with.  One: given the major delta V
>>>requirements for manuvers to intercept fuel ships, assuming they are close
>>>enough together that the mainship could intercept them (were talking about
>>>fractions of light speed and potentially light minutes of lateral drift.

>>So what?  The amount of fuel expense I assume would be enough to handle
>>light _days_ of lateral maneuvering.  Remember that this ship is
>>using an entire 1/3 of its fuel capacity in order to make the 200
>>intercepts.  To a rough degree, this allows 4/400 light years of
>>maneuvering (assuming the design target system is Alpha Centauri,
>>4 light years away).

>>I am assuming what I consider to be absolutely obviously worse than
>>would ever be the case.

>I'm not clear how many fuel packets you expect to launch.  Presumably
>hundreds.

Why assume when I explicitely write exactly how many are proposed?
As I stated in my original e-mail, 200 fuel sails.  As I state above
in the quoted text, 200 intercepts.

Please, if you aren't even reading what I write, do not bother
responding.


I refuse to even read the rest of your e-mail until you start reading
to what you're responding to.

What a waste of time.
-- 
    _____     Isaac Kuo kuo@bit.csc.lsu.edu http://www.csc.lsu.edu/~kuo
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