NASA’s Star Trek-Style Space Ship, the IXS Enterprise

IXS Enterprise

By Abby Phillip | Washington Post June 11, 2014
“Warp speed, Mr. Sulu” (courtesy of Mark Rademaker/Flickr)

Yes! Engineer an Enterprise like in “Star Trek.”

NASA engineer and physicist Harold White announced a few years ago that he was working on a potentially groundbreaking idea that could allow space travel faster than the speed of light.

Space Entrepreneurs began as Pioneers.

And now, to boldly go where no designer has gone before, Mark Rademaker — who is collaborating with White — has created a CGI design concept for the “warp ship.” They’re calling it the IXS Enterprise.

“We wanted to have a decent image of a theory conforming Warp ship to motivate young people to pursue a STEM career,” Rademaker said in an e-mail interview. “It does have some Sci-Fi features that might never transfer to a possible final design, unless we really want to.”

IXS Enterprise

IXS Enterprise 2A warp ship such as the IXS Enterprise could allow travel to interstellar space in a matter of weeks rather than, say, centuries. And the science behind why it might be possible is truly mind-boggling.

An over-simplified explanation is that the concept seeks to exploit a “loophole” in Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity that allows travel faster than the speed of light by expanding space-time behind the object and contracting space-time front of it. Io9 explains more:

Essentially, the empty space behind a starship would be made to expand rapidly, pushing the craft in a forward direction — passengers would perceive it as movement despite the complete lack of acceleration.

White speculates that such a drive could result in “speeds” that could take a spacecraft to Alpha Centauri in a mere two weeks — even though the system is 4.3 light-years away.

Originally Proposed by Physicist Miguel Alcubierre

IXS Enterprise 3White, whose title is “Advanced Propulsion Theme Lead for the NASA Engineering Directorate,” has mathematically calculated a plausible way to accomplish this using far less energy than required by the original theory, which was proposed in 1994 by physicist Miguel Alcubierre.

IXS Enterprise 4His concept requires using large rings that surround the spacecraft (which you can see in the image above) to greatly reduce the amount of energy needed to warp space-time in front of and behind the spacecraft.

“The rings are most important as they will form the Warp bubble,” Rademaker said in his e-mail. “The way they are designed now will reduce the energy requirement needed to form the bubble. (By quite a large factor.) Also, we tried to fill up as much space within the rings, it’s expensive to leave that open or unused.”

NASA’s Eagleworks Labs

IXS Enterprise 5Harold White and his team at NASA’s Eagleworks Labs are now working to create a “proof of concept” for this idea.

IXS Enterprise 6So how quickly can this all become a reality? According to White, in an interview with i09, proving that the math can become a reality in the lab is the first and probably most important step in the process:

What White is waiting for is existence of proof — what he’s calling a “Chicago Pile” moment — a reference to a great practical example.

“In late 1942, humanity activated the first nuclear reactor in Chicago generating a whopping half Watt — not enough to power a light bulb,” he said. “However, just under one year later, we activated a ~4MW reactor which is enough to power a small town. Existence proof is important.”

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Warp Drive

Faster than Light — Warp Drive — Is it possible to travel faster than light? NASA’s Advanced Propulsion Lead, Dr. Harold White, has modified a previously unsuccessful FTL model called the Alcubbierre Drive and has successfully proven that faster than light travel might just be possible. Join Dr. White to discuss the hard facts behind this technology as well as roadblocks to exploring our closest stars.

Original article: This is the amazing design for NASA’s Star Trek-style space ship, the IXS Enterprise | Washington Post | Abby Phillip was a national political reporter covering the White House for The Washington Post. She left The Post in October 2017. Permission for images, by Mark Rademaker, pending.

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[…] NASA provides a truly remarkable history and unbound majesty of future deep-space exploration. Do not negate them. NASA’s Star Trek-Style Space Ship, the IXS Enterprise. […]

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[…] Read More: Yes! Engineer an Enterprise like in “Star Trek.” […]

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[…] By Abby Phillip | Washington Post June 11, 2014“Warp speed, Mr. Sulu” (courtesy of Mark Rademaker/Flickr)Yes! Engineer an Enterprise like in Star Trek.NASA engineer and physicist Harold White announced a few years ago that he was working on a potentially groundbreaking idea that could allow space travel faster than the speed of light.Read More: Yes! Engineer an IXS Enterprise like in Star Trek. […]

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