Willow's essays from her days at University of Denver

[E X O D I T E]

Jump Drives and You
by Willow Holt

Jump Drives are a highly advanced and highly expensive means of trans-system movement of ships.

There are four series of Jump Drives in existence, three of which actually work.

The first type of Jump Drive barely got out of prototype, and was found to be too unstable to serve in practical field use, and all units were quickly disposed of. Any surviving Series I Jump Drives are at best a collector's item, and at worst, something that will kill whoever attempts to use them.

The Series I Jump Drive operated off of a "liquid/solid/gas fuel" matrix, more often than not requiring a nearby cargo ship to carry the fuel as the ships that could power it were designed as warships first, cargo movers never.

Jump Drives Series II through IV are battery-powered; they consume standardized Jump Drive Batteries, produced by specialist shops throughout Sirius.

Every series of Jump Drive uses the same basic mechanics. The Jump Hole network is a series of tunnels through Einstenian space, and Ageira Jump Gates force a constant tunnel from certain points, whilst Jump Holes are a more naturally-occuring phenomenom that accomplishes the same function. The Gates themselves have to be in relatively close proximity lest their points drift and ships be flung far across space, to spend a very long time returning to civilization. A Jump Gate or Jump Hole that is reliable is said to be "phase-aligned", as to travel, one has to phase into Einstenian space.

Hyperspace Beacons can allow Jump Drive users at specific coordinates. A Hyperspatial Scanning Module will, in layman's terms, force a standing "beacon" in Einstenian space, that functions as a one-way hole OUT.

A Jump Drive generates a one-way localized Jump Hole IN to Einsteian space from Euclidean space, and requires an enormous amount of power to properly tunnel IN. Conservative estimates place the power requirements of the Series II to need the generator strength of a Battlecruiser to even attempt a breach. The hyperspace breached caused by the Jump Drive instantaneously collapses in on itself approximately 10^-24 seconds after the power source maintaining it is removed.

A Cruise Disruptor, due to how it overloads a ship's engines forcing a reboot, causes a similar effect in Jump Drives, forcing them to shut down lest the ship or equipment suffer permanent irreparable damage.

Practical Applications

The applications of the Jump Drive models in existence serve the functions of recon, rapid deployment, and emergency getaways. A warship wishing to partake in an engagement on the far side of its area of operations would benefit from being able to, after a brief charging period, rapidly re-deploy. Conversely, a warship that has found itself overwhelmed could appreciate the ability to tactically withdraw at the push of a button.

It is due to these practical applications that most House Governments place restrictions on the usage of such devices.

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