Ship Sim...

W

Worf

Vice Admiral
Don't know how many of you guys have seen this:

Space Combat

It's basically a spaceship simulator. It's from the guy that does X-Plane (if you're familiar with that flight sim).

So now, I wonder, who's going to model all the ships in it to see how they really fly...
 
Originally posted by Geffory Tolwin
come to think of it i never seen any manovering thrusters on wc ships :) so i dont see whow they will turn
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Does the thing model hydrogen ramscoops causing an atmospheric drag flight model in space?
 
Also, I didn't know thrusters had to be fully external to work! I guess the modern US Space shuttle cannot maneuver either.
 
Do you just sit on the forums looking for things to nitpick? :D What I mean by modern is as opposed to the Saturn V and it's command and landing and whatever else modules.
 
Originally posted by t.c.cgi
Also, I didn't know thrusters had to be fully external to work! I guess the modern US Space shuttle cannot maneuver either.
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The US Space Shuttle has nozzles on the wings and nose that jettison bleed air. That is how it rolls, yaws and pitches in orbit. It doesn't take much to push an object in space... it's waiting for it to accelerate and then apply counter-thrust that makes it so... fun.
 
That's what I meant, the thrusters are internal with ports to the outside. It makes them very hard to spot from a distance. I was pointing out that just because the thrusters aren't entirely external (like the first ship on the linked page) doesn't mean there aren't any. I'd think you'd want some fine-control for docking!

P.S. My first post was sarcastic. I forgot to use plenty of smilies to convey this.
 
Ahhh, okay. Gotcha' ;)

I was taking your previous post literally. Silly me!

Gosh, precision maneuvers must be hell to pull off in space. Fortunately we have simulations! Else there'd be a lot more mishaps and space debris.

I can only imagine the rigors of docking with the International Space Station... or any space station, for that matter :(
 
Rigors? Hell, just do as the Russians did with Mir and RAM into it. Docking is a breeze then. LOL
 
HAHAHA! You know what, though? The Russians sure have come a long way. I absolutely adore the Soyuz.

We'd better watch out, lest we end up with the future depicted in Super Wing Commander....

SOVIETS IN SPAAAACE!
 
Originally posted by Col.Dom
HAHAHA! You know what, though? The Russians sure have come a long way. I absolutely adore the Soyuz.
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Yeah, I adore obsolete thirty-year old technology too.
 
Docking in space is a really hard problem - the physics behind it are quite interesting, really.

Everything has to be carefully planned out, too - because changing altitude is hard (i.e., to control your altitude, you control your speed - the faster you go, the higher up you'll be due to the way gravity etc. work. Of course, go too fast and gravity will let you go...). So now you've accellerated speedwise (god I hate accellerated frames of reference), now you have to catch up with the space station, right? Well, if you want to go faster, you do, but then you gain altitude! You can slow down, and lose altitude simultaneously...

Oh yeah, you're going in a 3D space, so you can wobble around a bit so your paths don't align, I suppose. Plus, all the momentum - anyone remember that arcade game where you shoot bullets at meteors? Same deal...

Thank god for maneuvering thrusters, computers, and what not. It's hard enough to simulate this in 2d (I remember one of our physics simulators... the teacher even loaned us the program so we can practise at home).

Of course, I suppose in "free space" it's a bit easier since you don't care about docking to an orbiting station...
 
Yes. The fun of microgravity! Don't forget when these objects meet (the shuttle and station) they want to repel from each other. Gemini pilots discovered that their capsules required handles to get back in from extravehicular activites. Whenever they'd touch the capsule to get back inside, they'd push it and themselves further apart!
 
Originally posted by Col.Dom
The US Space Shuttle has nozzles on the wings and nose that jettison bleed air.
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Actually the shuttle doesn't jettison air through its control jets. It uses a chemical, which name eludes me at the moment, but the chemical expands when it enters vacuum, some gases will actually contract in space. The stuff is insanely corrosive, which is one reason they were so careful with retrieving Columbia wreckage.
In fact, an astronaut's spacesuit is actually bullet proof. Its damn strong to deal with the pressure differences inherent to to space. But the shuttle's maneuvering gas will eat right through every layer of the suit in a matter of seconds. Which is why the shuttle is forbidden to maneuver during a space walk.
 
Whoa. I never knew it used a chemical for the job. Very interesting to note, though. I'll have to research up on it. Sounds like a neat substance :D

As for the astronaut's space suits being bullet-proof- didn't they put that layer of kevlar under there to deal with space debris? As I understand, a grain of sand would easily tear through any fabric, thus making life very unhappy in space. I thought having the suit pressurized dealt with the pressure differential.

Here's a question: If a man were to be thrown into the vacuum of space, how long would it take for him to explode? I'm thinking it would be instantaneous- since the oxygen in your lungs and other internal gases would expand rapidly- and not "conveniently slow" like in most movies. Does anyone know?
 
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