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Quantum Setback For Warp Drives

Posted by kdawson on from the warp-zero-mister-sulu dept.

KentuckyFC writes "Warp drives were generally considered impossible by mainstream scientists until 1994 when the physicist Michael Alcubierre worked out how to build a faster-than-light drive using the principles of general relativity. His thinking was that while relativity prevents faster-than-light travel relative to the fabric of spacetime, it places no restriction on the speed at which regions of spacetime may move relative to each other. So a small bubble of spacetime containing a spacecraft could travel faster than the speed of light, at least in principle. But one unanswered question was what happens to the bubble when quantum mechanics is taken into account. Now, a team of physicists have worked it out, and it's bad news: the bubble becomes unstable at superluminal speeds, making warp drives impossible (probably)."

12 of 627 comments (clear)

  1. Hiesenberg says.... by MeNotU · · Score: 5, Funny

    Or is it *both* Impossible and not Impossible?

    1. Re:Hiesenberg says.... by ByOhTek · · Score: 5, Funny

      That's the only statement you could come up with?

      What a Bohr.

      --
      Self proclaimed typo king, and inventor of the bear destroying coffee table (patent not pending).
    2. Re:Hiesenberg says.... by RMingin · · Score: 5, Funny

      Perhaps it's only Infinitely Improbable?

      --
      The preceding comment is my own, and in no way construes an opinon of the Emperor of Mankind.
    3. Re:Hiesenberg says.... by RichardJenkins · · Score: 5, Funny

      If I were you I'd stop poking about with things we don't understand. After all, it was curiosity that did and didn't kill the cat. ...

      I'll get my coat.

    4. Re:Hiesenberg says.... by bytethese · · Score: 5, Funny

      Warp drives that wear dresses and makeup?

    5. Re:Hiesenberg says.... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Fourier information, I thought it was pretty funny.

  2. So we can't go there, big whoop... by bhunachchicken · · Score: 5, Funny

    Just do what the Planet Express Ship does and use a Dark Matter drive to move the Universe around us instead... :)

    --
    THE HONOUR OF THE KNIGHTS - CC Licensed Sci-Fi Novel
  3. Re:improbability drive by Lord_Frederick · · Score: 5, Funny

    Will that allow ludicrous speed?

  4. Cancel the Star Trek movie by Onyma · · Score: 5, Funny

    That's it, cancel the Star Trek Movie. Now that I know it's all fake it just ruined it for me.

    --
    Play me online? Well you know that I'll beat you. If I ever meet you I'll "/sbin/shutdown -h now" you. -Weird Al, kinda.
  5. Re:They won't be strangers for long. by commodore64_love · · Score: 5, Funny

    Oh my.

    This is why we need women in the army to stop that nonsense.

    --
    "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
  6. Re:Mod parent up by maxume · · Score: 5, Funny

    With magic, you can ride a unicorn.

    --
    Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
  7. Re:improbability drive by francium+de+neobie · · Score: 5, Funny

    Very large values of 1 and very small values of 0.