Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site uscvax.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!sdcsvax!sdcrdcf!uscvax!tli From: tli@uscvax.UUCP (Tony Li) Newsgroups: net.startrek Subject: Re: Death of the Enterprise Message-ID: <1256@uscvax.UUCP> Date: Sat, 8-Dec-84 03:01:45 EST Article-I.D.: uscvax.1256 Posted: Sat Dec 8 03:01:45 1984 Date-Received: Sun, 9-Dec-84 06:16:01 EST References: <2129@garfield.UUCP> Distribution: net Organization: CS&CE Depts, U.S.C., Los Angeles, CA Lines: 23 > In ST III the Enterprise exploded and fell toward the planet > where it burned as it entered the atmosphere. The question > is that should this have occured? And if not what should > have happened? > Thanx > Lt. Suvak > utcsrgv!garfield!lesley It seems possible. Assuming the Enterprise is in a stable orbit, a large explosion could shift the center of mass greatly. Air drag from that point would quickly take over. One of the things that bothered me about the scene was the lack of destruction. If you're going to implement a self-destruct mechanism, you'd make sure that it would *DESTROY* the ship. If you set of an uncontrolled anti-matter/matter reaction, it should be equivalent to a fair sized nuclear warhead, which should be enough to easily pulverize the ship. But in the movie, we see about 50% of the ship spiral in. Curioser and Curioser.... -- Tony Li ;-) Usc Computer Science Uucp: {sdcrdcf,randvax}!uscvax!tli Csnet: tli@usc-cse.csnet Arpa: tli@usc-ecl