how does it work?
is it replicated on activation or just springs up like a shield?
How did the borg manage to penatrate it, how can you adjust phaser frequency to go through metal? If it is metal.
And take into consideration that voyager had to "vanish" a part of the metal first before firing a torpedo.
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Star Trek Gamma Quadrant
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"Oh, yes, screw logic, let's go for a theory with no evidence!"
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"I think this reason why girls don't do well on multiple choice tests goes all the way back to the Bible, all the way back to Genesis, Adam and Eve. God said, 'All right, Eve, multiple choice or multiple orgasms, what's it going to be?' We all know what was chosen" - Rush Limbaugh, Feb. 23, 1994.
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The Gigantic Collection of Star Trek Minutiae
In the game Homeworld, the manual speaks of using an ablative effect or ablative layer in the armor of the hull in their ships.
It's really an ingenious low tech device, similar in principle to the reactive armor used in modern day tanks, and one that is easy to understand.
When a beam or kinetic weapons hits an ablative layer, the layer vaporizes instantly, not only absorbing the energy, but the vapors actually force the projectile outward of the secondary armor beneath. If it is a beam weapon, the vapors interferes with the beam or blocks it. This is what you call an ablative effect.
as for the armor--how does it keep regenerating itself???
the defiant's ablative armor gets painted back on every month or engagment or two.
[ May 27, 2001: Message edited by: TheF0rce ]
Janeway's shuttle had an emitter (Karath referred to a singular emitter that seemed pretty large for a shuttle). The emitter was able to replicate a layer of ablative armor around the shuttle. As the armor took damage, more could be replicated in the damaged area. Thus, you'd have regenerative ablative armor. Of course, this would be a massive power drain, but Janeway's shuttle was capable of Warp 6.
Now one Voyager, these armor emitter strips were installed all about the outer hull. Voyager would need more emitters since it is a lot larger than a shuttle. The armor was replicated into place and functioned the same as on the shuttle.
Also of note is the rapid degradation of the armor layer towards the end. This could be because of the huge power drain on the armor system (Voyager not really designed for it plus an enemy more powerful than Klingons). It could also be due to the emitters between the armor layer and the outer hull. The shuttle's emitter was inside the shuttle in the ceiling cavity and protected from shock and damage by the armor layer and the outer hull.
Ablative armor does not really regenerate. It vaporizes away gradually, and the vapors form a layer that interferes and dissipates any beam weapon. Ablative armor generally requires replacement.
If the armor is getting regenerated, then there must replicators to continually regenerate the armor. It sounds crazy but when you realize this, we do this all the time in games (regenerate armor). For me it really does not make so much sense since it's just better to regenerate shields instead.
Hey, holodecks are energy, but they can produce matter like-qualities.
Sometimes matter exhibits energy like characteristics, and sometimes energy exhibits matter-like characteristics.
I know it's a bit far-fetched, but it did seem to go on like it was a force-field. And it would comply with the "singular-emitter" comment. After all, an emitter usually emits energy.
-Blackbird
By the way, how would the Borg adapt to physical armor like that unless it involved energy in some way to destabilize it?