Orion Drive

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An Orion Drive is a kind of Nuclear-Pulse Maneuver Drive used on some interplanetary or interstellar vessels. They are a type of Relativistic Drive or Reaction Drive or Impulse Drive.

Description[edit]

Orion Drives are a type of Nuclear Pulse Drive (NPD) that eject a stream of detonators which explode, producing a blast wave that presses against a pressure plate at the rear of the ship moving the ship forward in reaction. The pulsed pressure of the propelling explosions are smoothed out by Massive shock-absorbers. Orion Drives are specified by the type of detonation used for propulsion.

Orion Drive Variations[edit]

The Orion-1 or "Fission Orion" utilizes fission or multistage fission-fusion detonators reacting against a massive pressure plate comprising approximately 10% of the ship's volume. A Fission Orion Drive produces significant radiation contamination as a byproduct of its operation. It is a TL–8-standard propulsion system.

The Orion-2 or "Fusion Orion" utilizes a combination of nuclear dampers, induced fusion, and inertial compensators with a much smaller pressure plate to produce survivable thrust, with low to negligible radioactive contamination byproduct. It is a TL–12-standard propulsion system.

The Orion-3 or "AM Orion" is a conjectural technology that is proposed to be the most advanced incarnation of the Orion Drive concept. It theoretically utilizes antimatter detonators, inertial compensators, and "ON-OFF" stasis fields in place of a pressure plate to produce survivable thrust, while producing no radiation or environmental damage. It is estimated to be approximately a TL–21 propulsion system.

The Hybrid Orion-2bis is a prototype device, utilizing antimatter detonators or antimatter-catalyzed nuclear detonators, inertial compensators, and a small pressure plate (instead of the more advanced and hypothetical stasis field) to produce survivable thrust, while producing no radiation or environmental damage. It is estimated to be a TL–18-standard propulsion system.

History & Background[edit]

No information yet available.

See also[edit]

Please refer to the following AAB Library Data for more information:
Starship:


References[edit]

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