Aired on January 4th, 2013
Guests: Dr. Richard Obousy, Dr. Eric Davis, Dr. Harold Sonny White. Topics: Faster Than Light (FTL) Travel, Warp Drive, Interstellar Travel. Please direct all comments and questions regarding Space Show programs/guest(s) to the Space Show blog, http://thespaceshow.wordpress.com. Comments and questions should be relevant to the specific Space Show program. Written Transcripts of Space Show programs are a violation of our copyright and are not permitted without prior written consent, even if for your own use. We do not permit the commercial use of Space Show programs or any part thereof, nor do we permit editing, YouTube clips, or clips placed on other private channels & websites. Space Show programs can be quoted, but the quote must be cited or referenced using the proper citation format. Contact The Space Show for further information. We welcomed our three guests, Drs. Obousy, Davis, and White to the program to discuss FTL travel, warp drive, and interstellar flight. More information is available at the Icarus Interstellar website, www.icarusinterstellar.org. We did not take a break during our program. Also, at times our discussion was technical and scientific. I looked up many terms & used my search engine frequently during the discussion given the advanced nature of the subject and our discussion. Don't be shy about looking up that which you may not understand or know about. I promise, if you do it will be well worth your time. We started with an introduction to Icarus Interstellar, FTL travel, and why interstellar propulsion & travel is important. Our guests then suggested the two most common approaches to FTL travel included warp drive and worm holes. For most of the program, we focused on the characteristics and research around warp drive. Our guests explained their research, including how they were able to develop the theories that reduced the amount of energy needed for warp drive from Jupiter size energy requirements to energy requirements representing the approximate mass of Voyager 1. Our discussion addressed the Miguel Alcubierre warp drive in light of the advanced work by Dr. White and others. The concept of the McMonigal Fatal Flaw was addressed with our guests explaining why it was not applicable. The workings of the warp drive were explained and though the discussion was heavy in physics, I urge you to take the time and embrace & learn about the advanced theoretical physics subjects discussed by our guests. Later, a listener asked about the use of a sun gravitational lens telescope at a specific AU from the sun as perhaps an alternative to interstellar flight. As you will hear, such a device would likely be a good tool enhancing FTL travel, not replacing it. As our discussion progressed, or guests rebutted many of the warp drive criticisms. Near the end of the program, we talked about what was needed to go from the lab and theory to small scale demo experiments to prove out the concepts. Our guests referenced to the Chicago Pile-1(CP-1) 1942 nuclear experiment & the subsequent step by step evolution of nuclear technology. Our guests talked about starting small with a demo proof and evolving upwards with more and more discovery, technology, and engineering. Another example cited for the typical development path included the discovery of the electron in 1897 followed by the discovery of the proton in 1917, and the discovery of the neutron in 1932. Throughout our discussion, our guests put forth compelling reasons why we should be developing FTL travel and interstellar spaceflight. Their respective concluding comments reinforced the importance and why of our being interested in FTL and exotic concepts. Please post your comments/questions on The Space Show blog per above. If you want to email our guests, you can do so through me.
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