A New Study Reveals a Warp Drive That Actually Operates Within Known Physics
Warp drives have been the dream of of spacefarers ever since they first graced the pages of science fiction novels, but real-world attempts have often traipsed into areas of exotic physics like negative energy and superluminal matter.
A new study, produced by scientists using the newly established toolkit Warp Factory, announces the creation of a concept that doesn’t rely on wonky, never-before-seen physics.
While the idea is far from the tech that’ll power the future Starship Enterprise, it could nonetheless be an important step towards bringing warp drive research into the realm of known physics.
If humanity has any far-future hope of becoming a Type III Civilization (that is, a society capable of leveraging all the energy of its host galaxy) we’re going to need warp drives—as-of-now fantastical engines capable of warping spacetime and exceeding the speed of light. After all, the Milky Way is roughly 120,000 light years across, which is not exactly something that’s easily traversable.
The idea of a warp drive (outside of sci-fi circles) first popped up in the ‘90s, originated by physicist Miguel Alcubierre. The early theoretical designs relied on exotic physics like “negative energy,” which has never been observed in the real world. But a new study, published in the journal Classical and Quantum Gravity, details a concept that doesn’t rely on physics-breaking theories. In other words, it’s a warp drive that theoretically operates within the known bounds of physics.
“This study changes the conversation about warp drives,” lead author Jared Fuchs, a senior scientist at the research firm Applied Physics (AP), said in a press statement. “By demonstrating a first-of-its-kind model, we’ve shown that warp drives might not be relegated to science fiction.”
According to the team, this new concept uses a “sophisticated blend of traditional and novel gravitational techniques to create a warp bubble that can transport objects at high speeds within the bounds of known physics.” This is known as a “Constant-Velocity Subluminal Warp Drive,” and as the paper describes, the technique matches previous theoretical solutions—including those explored by Alcubierre. But crucially, this concept stays within the known realm of physics.
This news comes only a few weeks after AP announced the creation of the Warp Factory, an online toolkit designed for researchers studying the physics and engineering of warp drives. Christopher Helmerich, another senior scientist at AP, said this toolkit was a “reality check” for the warp drive research field, and that (according to its website) the company plans to offer up $500,000 in grants for proposed research that does not rely on exotic concepts such as “negative energy or superluminal matter.”.This new model is the first fruit of that mission.
While this new warp drive doesn’t rely on wonky physics, that doesn’t mean we’re on the fast track to becoming masters of the Milky Way. Even this more realistic design has a few limitations.
“Such a design would still require a considerable amount of energy, [but] it demonstrates that warp effects can be achieved without exotic forms of matter,” Helmerich, who was also a co-author on this new study, said in a press statement. “These findings pave the way for future reductions in warp drive energy requirements."
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