I hope my brain does not become permanently warped thinking about this stuff. But this is simply how my warped brain works. It is unavoidable. If you factor in the warped subject of space-time, then Bob's your uncle and misery loves company. I hope I do not bend anyones sensibilities in n-space.
The spider driveFor all intents and purposes an LD’s tractors create “tractor beams” of intensely focused gravity that punch through n-space all the way into hyperspace. A spider drive is effectively a gravity drive.
Let's pause for clarification of information found in the drunken wiki.
The impeller drive is also a phased array “gravity drive.”
The wiki goes on to say …
It could also be used for propulsion in hyperspace, but was highly dangerous when making contact with a gravity wave. Transforming it into a Warshawski sail largely removed this danger.
The impeller wedge siphons energy from hyperspace. So, a wedge punches clean through to hyperspace and I assume to the alpha wall. Obviously a lot of energy is released from hyper which is absorbed by the wedge. The amount of energy released from hyper through the hole in the wall separating n-space from hyperspace is not enough energy to overcome the very powerful wedge. It would be enough energy to destroy the ship if the ship is actually in hyper where there is no wedge to protect it. The danger is actually from the grav waves that are found in hyperspace. Enter the Warshawski sail to tame the grav waves.
I expect when something that holds a lot of energy is pierced, that energy will flow through the bridge (piercing). Entropy. The powerful wedge absorbs this energy. From where does this energy flow? Is the wedge siphoning energy from hyperspace alone or from a grav wave?
A spider drive pierces the wall separating n-space and hyper as well all the way to the alpha wall. Why is there no release of energy which I would expect to destroy a ship without a wedge to protect/absorb the energy? The
gravity beams actually lock onto the wall providing a permanent purchase point in deep space. Energy flowing through the bridge is uninterrupted.
We must be mindful that the alpha wall is not a physical structure made of bricks. Instead, it is a barrier. What is this barrier made of? Is it some construct of gravity? Yes, it is. Thus, the alpha wall does not need to be pierced. Gravitational waves interact with gravity.
Each wave causes the others to change slightly. The interactions create new types of waves with their own independent frequencies. These new waves are smaller, more chaotic, and more unpredictable than the original ones.
It seems like something bad should happen to the LD, which has no wedge to absorb the flow of energy. For sake of conversation, let's substitute electricity for the energy. Why isn't the LD destroyed? If it were in hyperspace without a sail it would be. I don't assume there is a such thing as barely touching a grav wave and surviving? Perhaps being in n-space the LD is grounded? At any rate, the LD isn't utilizing the energy exchange. It is relying on being dragged along by the gravitic purchase point in hyperspace. But what about the energy that is flowing through the bridge? And if the LD is being dragged along by the permanent “gravitic chains* that have locked onto the alpha wall, why is that acceleration so low? The apparent velocity of the purchase point in hyper should be higher than the relative velocity of the purchase point in n-space. But alas, the purchase point seems to be constantly broken and reestablished in “micro-bursts” and if you visualize the “micro-burst-long” purchase points propelling the ship as little feet that are running (raising up and down losing and reestablishing a purchase point with the ground) very quickly, it would appear acceleration should be higher.
But if that concentrated beam of gravity makes contact with a grav wave, then that purchase point’s apparent velocity should be much faster than an LD’s acceleration. Even for a micro-burst of contact. And the energy bleed (feedback) from the grav wave should definitely destroy the LD.
Note: I do not know why in the HV ships cannot enter hyper from inside the hyper limit. Reasons why this cannot happen and also the result of said attempt vary from author to author in the sci-fi world from an inoperable engine to the destruction of the ship to the destruction of the system.
At any rate, I assume in the sci-fi world any contact with hyperspace from inside of a gravity well is highly frowned upon or fatal. So, as far as an LD is concerned, I am surprised that contact with gravity waves in hyperspace with a gravity beam from inside the limit is possible.
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The artist formerly known as cthia.
Now I can talk in the third person.