Updated: NASA Shows Off Gorgeous Concept for a Real-Life Enterprise

[IanDavis]

Updated: NASA Shows Off Gorgeous Concept for a Real-Life Enterprise

Yes, the theoretical warp-ship is actually named the IXS Enterprise.

Update: Now for your viewing pleasure, a Redditer by the name of Oldnumber007 has recreated the IXS Enterprise [a href=http://www.reddit.com/r/KerbalSpaceProgram/comments/27yc9u/my_attempt_at_the_ixs_enterprise/]inside Kerbal Space Program[/a]. He had to use a few mods to do it, but it looks pretty impressive.

Original Storyespite some [a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/135055-Human-Spaceflight-No-Single-Rationale-Justifies-it-NRC-Report]arguments to the contrary[/a], NASA is set on keeping its eyes on the stars. With current propulsion technology, placing a man on Mars is a huge endeavor, and anything past that is almost unthinkable. There's a team inside NASA who thinks that that "next step" requires a warp drive. Not only have they started building one, but they've also designed a ship for it.

Dubbed the IXS Enterprise, the concept ship replaces the sci-fi standard warp nacelles with huge rings that projects the warp field. This concept was created by artist Mark Rademaker, who worked closely with NASA to design a ship that fits all our current theories on warp technology.

It's no secret that NASA has been working on a warp drive [a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/119649-Warp-Drive-Might-Actually-Be-Possible]for many years now[/a]. The current theory involves bending space in a way that doesn't actually move the ship so much as all of time and space around it. According to researcher Dr. Harold White, this works by exploiting a possible loophole in the universe. While no objects break the speed of light, the universe around the ship is expanding and contracting at ridiculous speeds. Pulling that off requires astounding amounts of energy, but White and his team think they've found a way to do it more efficiently.

[gallery=2668]

If everything works as planned, the IXS Enterprise could make the 4.3 light-year trek to Alpha Centauri in only two weeks. Since the ship doesn't actually accelerate, NASA doesn't have to worry about turning the crew into chunky salsa, which is always a plus.

If you're interested in learning more about how this warp drive is supposed to work, you can watch [a href=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9M8yht_ofHc]this talk[/a] by Dr. Harold White, where he goes into all the gritty details.

Source: [a href=https://www.flickr.com/photos/123021064@N05/sets/72157644113972600/]Mark Rademaker[/a] via [a href=http://sploid.gizmodo.com/holy-crap-nasas-interplanetary-spaceship-concept-is-fr-1589001939]Gizmodo[/a]

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[Pyrian]

Warp drive vessel design: Check!

Remotely feasible warp drive design: ...

Even theoretically possible warp drive design that doesn't require not only new technology, but new physics: ...

 

[ShadowsofHope]

This needs to be a thing. Before I die. Please.

Also, IXS?! That's only one S off from ISS, or.. the Terran Empire! That does not inspire confidence..

 

[Exterminas]

Warp drive vessel design: Check!

Remotely feasible warp drive design: ...

Even theoretically possible warp drive design that doesn't require not only new technology, but new physics: ...

About sixty years ago, some very smart people thought that it would never be feasible to build computers smaller than an a house.

 

[Eiv]

That is beyond beautiful. Its so stunning that I am nearly speechless.

 

[Xaryn Mar]

As usual. NASA... toss a bone to the sci-fi fan-crowd and justify your paycheques for another year.

It's getting a little predictable now you guys. It's always concept art of some new design or artists rendition at a speck 500 light years away that may be a planet.

But whatever I'm down with this.

FIrst order of business. FIre everyone at NASA and and close the space program down for 20 years.
Next. All the funds that would have gone into NASA sink it into training teachers and building more schools.
Next. The firstwave graduates are placed and allocated to key areas to create the new maths, materials, biochemistry and compueters needed for the lofty goals.
Lastly Restart NASA.

Better yet:
Shut down the US military. They use almost as many funds in one day as NASA does in a year. Think of the resources the education system and reseach could get for that amount of money.

 

[Hero in a half shell]

The current theory involves bending space in a way that doesn't actually move the ship so much as all of time and space around it.

That's... exactly how the Spaceship in Futurama works.

Exactly how it works, and that's quite scary.

 

[Pyrian]

About sixty years ago, some very smart people thought that it would never be feasible to build computers smaller than an a house.

Shall I list the technology they thought we would have, but don't? For I assure you, it vastly outnumbers the one technology that has surprised people with its continual improvement.

The current theory involves bending space in a way that doesn't actually move the ship so much as all of time and space around it.

That's... exactly how the Spaceship in Futurama works.

Exactly how it works, and that's quite scary.

Uh, that's not scary. The general idea long predates Futurama.

 

[Elijah Newton]

Hm. This sounds familiar.

Are we quite certain it's not going to leap outside the known universe and into another dimension, a "dimension of pure chaos, pure evil?" I'm just sayin', if it returns in a decaying orbit around Neptune do not board to search for survivors.

 

[Outcast107]

Hm. This sounds familiar.

Are we quite certain it's not going to leap outside the known universe and into another dimension, a "dimension of pure chaos, pure evil?" I'm just sayin', if it returns in a decaying orbit around Neptune do not board to search for survivors.

I FEEL THE WARP OVER TAKING ME!

OT: Sounds pretty awesome, hopefully nothing goes wrong. Also hope to see something amazing happen in my lifetime if they get this working.

 

[SerBrittanicus]

I have been following the stuff related to the Alcubierre drive for a while especially when they found it would be possible without being the size of Jupiter. However wasn't the major problem that it could potentially turn the ship into some kind of devastating space cannon that could wipe out all life, etc at the target destination.

The current theory involves bending space in a way that doesn't actually move the ship so much as all of time and space around it.

That's... exactly how the Spaceship in Futurama works.

Exactly how it works, and that's quite scary.

Thats exactly what I always think when I read about Nasa's research into this - next stop planet express ship.

 

[vallorn]

Hm. This sounds familiar.

Are we quite certain it's not going to leap outside the known universe and into another dimension, a "dimension of pure chaos, pure evil?" I'm just sayin', if it returns in a decaying orbit around Neptune do not board to search for survivors.

this ship is stunning but where we are going we wont need eyes...

Hopefully we as a species can get some of these things up and running so we can have interstellar colonies sooner rather than later

 

[Callate]

I'm torn between the idea that this could be wonderful if it worked and a vague concern that a misfire might not wreck the ship, but the universe (or at least the vicinity of Earth.)

 

[gridsleep]

As usual. NASA... toss a bone to the sci-fi fan-crowd and justify your paycheques for another year.

It's getting a little predictable now you guys. It's always concept art of some new design or artists rendition at a speck 500 light years away that may be a planet.

But whatever I'm down with this.

FIrst order of business. FIre everyone at NASA and and close the space program down for 20 years.
Next. All the funds that would have gone into NASA sink it into training teachers and building more schools.
Next. The firstwave graduates are placed and allocated to key areas to create the new maths, materials, biochemistry and compueters needed for the lofty goals.
Lastly Restart NASA.

How about: keep NASA open, and close down that other thing that costs 1000 times as much, the Pentagon. NASA gets about a billion dollars a year. The Pentagon gets 750 billion dollars a year. So we can kill brown people all around the world. Let's decrease the military budget by 90% and we'll have enough money to pay for everything else including all our debt in about a month. Keep the space program. Get rid of the killers. Oh, and if you're one of those people who actually worry about terrorists? All those terrorists organizations that supposedly hate us were created and trained by the CIA. Yeah.

But, just looking at how we human beings treat each other even this far into the 21st Century, if we do create a working FTL drive, the rest of the universe needs to be very afraid, because we are all insane.

 

[J Tyran]

Hm. This sounds familiar.

Are we quite certain it's not going to leap outside the known universe and into another dimension, a "dimension of pure chaos, pure evil?" I'm just sayin', if it returns in a decaying orbit around Neptune do not board to search for survivors.

I FEEL THE WARP OVER TAKING ME!

OT: Sounds pretty awesome, hopefully nothing goes wrong. Also hope to see something amazing happen in my lifetime if they get this working.

Mankind will finally recognise the True Powers, For the Dark Gods!

 

[iseko]

K so Im no physicist. But I do have a question for the ones present. So it is impossible for matter to achieve lightspeed let alone FTL. But this warp bubble allows te movement of space around the bubble. Which would allow the ship to arrive faster then light would at the destination. Now the fact that you move from point A to point B. Doesn't that mean you are time traveling in a sense? Time slows down outside of the bubble relative to what is inside. Since the bubble is moving faster. I know it is not actually moving. Space around it is but still... That would slow down time in the space around it? Urgh i gave myself a headache...

Its like a train moving at near lightspeed and then someone in the train runs forward. Time would slow down for that person compared to the other passengers on the train. Wouldn't it? Isn't this the same thing?

Its the reading the letter before you wrote it thing... Please... Someone... Help me

EDIT: does it come with guns? Railguns? Phasers? Photontorpedos?

 

[BurningWyvern90]

I'm crying.

Feasible in the near future or not, THIS is why I'm getting a Physics degree, despite the hiccups. And the math. THIS is why I want to be an astronaut, or at the very least a theoretical astrophysicist.

LOOK AT HOW BEAUTIFUL IT IS. *sobs*