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Warp drive, or a drive enabling space warp, is one of several ways of travelling through space found in science fiction. [3] It has been often discussed as being conceptually similar to hyperspace. [3] [4]: 238–239 A warp drive is a device that distorts the shape of the space-time continuum.
The Alcubierre drive ([alkuˈβjere]) is a speculative warp drive idea according to which a spacecraft could achieve apparent faster-than-light travel by contracting space in front of it and expanding space behind it, under the assumption that a configurable energy-density field lower than that of vacuum (that is, negative mass) could be created.
The warp drive velocity in Star Trek is generally expressed in "warp factor" units, which—according to Star Trek Star Fleet Technical Manual—corresponds to the magnitude of the warp field. Achieving warp factor 1 is equal to breaking the light barrier, while the actual velocity corresponding to higher factors is determined using an ...
The idea of a warp drive is particularly appealing because it’s technically describable within general relativity, as the Mexican theoretical physicist Miguel Alcubierre proposed back in 1994.
A revolutionary study introduces a warp drive model compatible with known physics, offering a scientifically grounded approach to faster-than-light travel.
Artist rendition of a spaceship entering warp drive. Generic terms for engines enabling science fiction spacecraft propulsion include "space drive" and "star drive". [g] [2]: 198, 216 In 1977 The Visual Encyclopedia of Science Fiction listed the following means of space travel: anti-gravity, [h] atomic (nuclear), bloater, [i] cannon one-shot, [j] Dean drive, [k] faster-than-light (FTL ...
Miguel Alcubierre theorized that it would be possible to create a warp drive, in which a ship would be enclosed in a "warp bubble" where the space at the front of the bubble is rapidly contracting and the space at the back is rapidly expanding, with the result that the bubble can reach a distant destination much faster than a light beam moving ...
It achieves characteristic velocities of >300 km/s with an acceleration of ~1.7•10 −3 g, with a ship initial mass of ~1700 metric tons, and payload fraction above 10%. Although these are still far short of the requirements for interstellar travel on human timescales, the study seems to represent a reasonable benchmark towards what may be ...