Thursday 10 July 2014

Ganymedian light cruiser part II

Here is the second part of the post related to the new Ganymedian main light warship. Awesome agility, novel configuration, fearsome hacking capability and deadly weaponry, it has it all.



This ship has come as an unpleasant surprise to the complacent circles of those who expected the artificial intelligences of the gas giants to stagnate and ultimately disappear. While its appearance assuaged some fears of breaking new ground and making every human fleet obsolete, the light cruiser is set to very quickly challenge the outer trade lanes, and might even help build a control wall blocking the way to the Kuiper belt.


Much as been said already about the ship, so I will let the pictures speak by themselves.


soon I will post pictures of its lighter counterpart (and the human equivalent of a corvette) on this blog.


3 comments:

  1. This is a really excellent asymmetrical design. Just out of interest, where would the propellant tanks be?

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    1. Thank you !
      Very good question. Well, the reaction mass you embark depend on how far/fast you want to go. The good news is that the Ganymedians have access to the Helium 3 isotope directly available in the atmosphere of Jupiter. So they can use aneutronic fusion engines, avoiding all the pitfalls of radiation shielding and neutrons slowly destroying the metal of the ship. The engines work by triggering nuclear fusion between deuterium and helium 3, thanks to matter-anti-matter reaction. Then, you can add some hydrogen in the nozzle, to increase the thrust (note that this has to be done carefully, so as not to interfere with the fusion itself), or if you prefer the amount of matter ejected by your engine. Thus, you need antimatter and extra reaction mass for your ship (hydrogen).
      Now, if you assume a patrol pattern around a Jovian planet, and you take in account some refueling along the way, a couple of external tanks can carry enough hydrogen for the mission. Energy itself is provided by anti-matter triggered fusion of Helium 3, and voila ! The tanks would be located externally, above and most likely below the main nozzle.
      Now, of course, if you want the ship to be capable of long battle acceleration on the other edge of the Kuiper belt, you got yourself an issue. I guess large ferry tanks could still fit in the aft part of the ship.
      One could perhaps use other denser molecules than H2 as extra reaction mass, such as water or methane, say, but that is well beyond my (and I am afraid, current humanity's) level of knowledge.

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  2. Looks partially like Boba Fett Slave 1
    Sorry for my English

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