On Tue, 2012-06-26 at 17:28 +0200, Onno Meyer wrote: > Johannes wrote: > > If you want windows in case of an emergency, where normal sensors failed: > > > > The most important emergency operation would be to land somewhere safe. > > Hello Johannes, > > right now I'm working on 30,000-ton bulk freighters. At > higher TLs they're 200' balls, with the bridge shielded > by at least two other decks. Those ships cost hundreds > of millions, and redundant sensors are small fry. Most > have two radars or AESAs, two FTL radars, two PESAs or > thermographs, and four big LLTVs.
I have a question. Is there any real point to having external structure on a space freighter at all, ball shaped or otherwise? Cargo holds and the like seem like a pretty useless idea in space. Why not just a long bar with propulsion systems at the back and particle shielding in front. On the bar attach containers in a ring. Possibly multiple layers of containers. Stations could have cargo loading decks which bring containers up to the ship. Attach a container, rotate the ship. Attach another container, repeat. Assuming large enough containers, passengers could simply live in a completely sealed container with its own power systems, life support, gravity, etc, and be handled like all other cargo. If they insist on dinner with the captain, transport tubes could be connected to their container from the crew cabins. -- Knowledge Is Power Power Corrupts Study Hard Be Evil _______________________________________________ GurpsNet-L mailing list <[email protected]> http://mail.sjgames.com/mailman/listinfo/gurpsnet-l
