posted
Although I know we have seen reverse warp, have we ever seen reverse impulse ordered? If so, may I ask how this actually happens? Do they use a low-level warp field or something?
(The reason I ask is because I'm in the middle of drafting up a starship, modified Olympic-class. I was planning on moving the impulse units to the nacelle pylons and was wondering whether or not it would be beneficial to have impulse exhaust vents facing both directions.)
posted
"Full reverse" is something that has been yelled in several episodes. I always thought this to be impulse speed.
I know we have had several instances where reverse impulse was indeed used. I believe the explaination to be that impulse is actually a low level warp field.
This is somewhat proven by the 'hyper impulse' drive of the Aeon in "Future's End", which was used to go to warp speed. I say somewhat because it is technology of the future.
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posted
Reverse warp I can understand - just reverse the firing order for the warp coils. Reverse impulse, though, would need a forward-facing vent. Given that we've never seen a fully forward-facing engine, that probably means there are plates that can slide into place to redirect thrust in a forward-ish direction (like with today's airliner jet engines). Either that or some yukky subspace trick.
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posted
I think its a "yukky subspace trick". Maybe the impulse vents can somehow PULL the ship as well as PUSH the ship.
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posted
Wasn't it established by the TNGTM that they use forcefields to direct the impulse exhaust in order to go different directions, including backward?
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posted
And even before that, from ST3...
Kirk to Sulu: [as he sits down in chair & stares at viewscreen] "Back one-quarter impulse..." [insert rocking Hornerian fanfare here]
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posted
I thought that full reverse had something to do with the RCS thrusters. But I doubt that with even all the Galaxy Class RCS packs would be able to do that.
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posted
I still like to know how the Enterprise-D did that weird turn near the end of 'Yesterday's Enterprise'.
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posted
The idea of "thrust reverser plates" made out of forcefields makes the most sense to me. It seems perfectly plausible for those ships with their engines on the aft end of a narrow saucer (so that the reverse jets can go above and below the saucer), or on a narrow vertical neck (so that the jets can go port & stbd of the neck). Also, in "Relics" LaForge and Scotty realize the E-D has been sucked into the Dyson sphere because they spot the marks of her fighting back the tractor beam - marks that could well be where her reversed jets hit the sphere surface. (The location of the impulse engines of the Olympic class does raise questions, though. How can you reverse the jets past that bulky spherical hull?)
Reversed thrust would probably not be as efficient as nonreversed thrust. Thus, going "1/4 impulse" aft would result in a noticeably lower acceleration than going 1/4 impulse forward - and the scene in ST3 would be easily explained. We wouldn't have to attribute ALL of the ship's sluggishness in that scene to the battle damage she had received...
Of course, the ships would have to have another method of braking in addition to this weak reverse-thrust impulse. After all, starships can stop *very* rapidly when they want to, performing *far* more radical decelerations than accelerations. This is where the "yukky subspace tricks" come to play, most probably. But these tricks cannot be used for acceleration, only for deceleration...
posted
I think reverse Impulse speed would be limited somehow. It might screw up the SIF (like I imagine reverse warp does. Which I can't actually ever remember taking place. Anyone remember an instance?)
The best graphical representation of reverse Impulse is possible The Nth Degree (season 4 TNG). As the probe approaches the Enterprise, Picard orders reverse Impulse (1/4 I believe), and we see the ship reversing away. Picard then orders full Impulse, and then we see the Enterprise swing around, and race off at full impulse.
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posted
THe way I imagine reverse impulse would work is that forcefields can be made to form whatever shape you want. Because of this, you merely take a "scoop" shaped forcefield projected just aft of the impulse engines. The material that pushes the ship hits the forcefueld, and curves around until it is moving in the other direction, which causes the ship to move. This bending of forcefields could also allow the ship to make rather fast turns using impulse engines instead of RCS thrusters.
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