CrackpotForeigner Posted June 26, 2013 Share Posted June 26, 2013 But how will advanced alien civilisations ever take us seriously if we can't even handle abbreviations? I think they'd be quite short with us. I expect so. They're just farming us for our flesh anyway. As soon as the population reaches an unsustainable maximum they'll show up for the slaughter. Mark my words. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theunderstudy Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 Quite big? You struggle with the idea of enormity? You just won't believe how vastly, hugely, mind- bogglingly big it is. I mean, you may think it's a long way down the road to the chemist's, but that's just peanuts to space. Read this: You bastard. You took the words from my very mouth!!!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarjei Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 (edited) NASA's NEXT ion thruster runs five and a half years nonstop to set new recordBy David SzondyJune 26, 2013The NEXT ion thruster has run for 48,000 hours (Image: NASA Christopher J. Lynch (Photo: Wyle Information Systems, LLC))Image Gallery (2 images)On Monday, NASA announced that its advanced ion propulsion engine operated for 48,000 hours, or five and a half years – and that’s without stops for fuel or coffee. Developed under NASA's Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) project, the engine now holds the record for the longest test duration of any type of space propulsion system.NEXT is a solar electric propulsion system where electricity from the spacecraft’s solar panels is used to power a a 7-kW class ion thruster. In this, particles of xenon gas are electrically charged and then accelerated to speeds up to 90,000 mph (145,000 km/h). Such thrusters have already been used on spacecraft, such as NASA’s Dawn probe, and engineers are very interested in them because of their much higher performance compared to conventional chemical rocket engines.NASA Glenn engineer performs verification tests of the imaging diagnostic suite for assess...The test was carried out in a vacuum chamber at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, where the NEXT thruster continually fired day and night. In December, it had already passed 43,000 hours of operation and when it passed 48,00 hours it had consumed 1,918 lb (870 kg) of xenon propellant and generated a total impulse that would take over 22,000 lb (10,000 kg) of conventional rocket propellant for comparable applications.NASA hopes to use NEXT or some version of it in a wide range of deep space missions. The thrust made by an ion engine is tiny compared to a chemical rocket, but its very high efficiency combined with its ability to fire for years on end means that it can build up astonishing speeds over time. As for the test model, it is on its way to a well-deserved retirement as it is switched off."The NEXT thruster operated for more than 48,000 hours," says Michael J. Patterson, principal investigator for NEXT at Glenn. "We will voluntarily terminate this test at the end of this month, with the thruster fully operational. Life and performance have exceeded the requirements for any anticipated science mission."article Edited June 27, 2013 by tarjei 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarewsEyebrowDesigner Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 I was thinking. These habitable planets. On the off chance there is some beasties, what could we do to say hello? I thought about some morse code style beams of light aimed in their direction. It will take 22 years, but still, that's faster than we can go! Only problem is, what we send could end up being 'douchebags' in their language... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted June 27, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted June 27, 2013 (edited) The odds on said 'beastie' knowing morse code aren't good! Edited June 27, 2013 by Nigel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarewsEyebrowDesigner Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 It would be rather alarming if they did, come to think of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVFCforever1991 Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 Probably telepathic... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gompedyret Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 The universe is quite a cool place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nigel Posted June 27, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted June 27, 2013 It cant be bigger than the NEC car park! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dont_do_it_doug. Posted June 27, 2013 Author Share Posted June 27, 2013 Only 22 light years away. Race ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limpid Posted June 27, 2013 Administrator Share Posted June 27, 2013 The universe is quite a cool place. It's staggeringly hot. To create a residual temperature of nearly 4 Kelvin across the entire volume of the universe is a mind boggling amount of heat. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted June 27, 2013 Share Posted June 27, 2013 I was thinking. These habitable planets. On the off chance there is some beasties, what could we do to say hello? I thought about some morse code style beams of light aimed in their direction. It will take 22 years, but still, that's faster than we can go! Only problem is, what we send could end up being 'douchebags' in their language... Isn't mathematics the universal language or something ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pelle Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 I was thinking. These habitable planets. On the off chance there is some beasties, what could we do to say hello? I thought about some morse code style beams of light aimed in their direction. It will take 22 years, but still, that's faster than we can go! Only problem is, what we send could end up being 'douchebags' in their language... Isn't mathematics the universal language or something ? Was about to say that. At least it's what I've read or heard. From more than one source. Could still be wrong, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarewsEyebrowDesigner Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 How do we know it is the universal language? Did aliens let us know? Have they been in contact all along? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mjmooney Posted June 28, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted June 28, 2013 If mathematics is the universal language, I'm going to have trouble getting along with aliens. Me: Hi alien! Alien: 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fort Boyard Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 I think its a miracle how the Earth has managed to remain practically untouched in such a volatile environment. There are things out there that could destroy this planet in a millisecond. Most people consider a black hole to be the most destructive force in the Universe but apparently its not. A Quasar has the gravitational pull of one billion black holes and when it destroys something it steals its energy and adds its gravitational pull to its own. Does that mean it has unlimited power and could destroy the universe eventually? Bruce WIllis would not be able to save us from one thats for sure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AVFCforever1991 Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 Think there is a planet that protects us from all that, might be Jupiter.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BOF Posted June 28, 2013 Moderator Share Posted June 28, 2013 IMO it's not really a miracle because, firstly it hasn't remained practically untouched. General thinking is cosmic activity has on a few occasions wiped out the vast majority of life here. Plus given the size of the universe, you'd be incredibly unlucky for something to manage to avoid everything else out there and happen to hit us (of all planets) first. I'd say we've gotten our fair share and only our fair share. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tarjei Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 It has certainly not remained practically untouched. It's also not very old in the cosmic sense, and people have only been on it for a extremely short time in relation to that. We know that a few catastrophic events have occurred, but possibly many more. Most things destructive in this sense is also constructive. If not for meteors, volcanoes, lightning, winds etc, life might not have gotten started at all, or ended up evolving a particular way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrackpotForeigner Posted June 28, 2013 Share Posted June 28, 2013 Yeah it's easy to for get that in the, like, cosmic sense, life on earth "as we know it" is just a brief flourish inbetween catastrophic events. We're like bacteria living in a splash of water on the toilet floor before the cleaner comes in with the Dettol mop. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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