Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site unm-cvax.UUCP Path: utzoo!linus!philabs!cmcl2!lanl!unm-cvax!cs4911ay From: cs4911ay@unm-cvax.UUCP Newsgroups: net.startrek Subject: Re: What's a warp? Message-ID: <49@unm-cvax.UUCP> Date: Wed, 24-Oct-84 15:26:56 EDT Article-I.D.: unm-cvax.49 Posted: Wed Oct 24 15:26:56 1984 Date-Received: Fri, 26-Oct-84 07:01:05 EDT References: <221@wjvax.UUCP> <2941@mit-eddie.UUCP>, <193@spp2.UUCP> Organization: Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque Lines: 21 [It is pitch black. You are likely to be eaten by a -- ] The (wf)^3 formula has long been recognized as a problem in reconciling interstellar distances with starship flight times. Those of us who purchased the Star Trek Map set awhile back, which included the Star Fleet Navigation Manual (or some similar document) discovered an interesting solution: the base formula is, indeed, (wf)^3, but the actual equation is something like D*(wf)^3, where D is a factor dependent on the local density of matter in the region of space through which ship is travelling. This factor, in relatively dense space (such as within spiral arms of the Galaxy, where there is a significant amount of interstellar dust and gas) reduces flight times to a reasonable quantity. -- Mike Conley U.N.M., Albuquerque, NM "Think of it as evolution in action."