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How do Star Destroyers deaccelerate?

Posted: 2004-04-22 09:36am
by FTeik
This may sound like a stupid question, but since all their thrusters seem to be pointed backwards, how do star destroyers and other SW-vessel deaccelerate?

Re: How do Star Destroyers deaccelerate?

Posted: 2004-04-22 09:49am
by PeZook
FTeik wrote:This may sound like a stupid question, but since all their thrusters seem to be pointed backwards, how do star destroyers and other SW-vessel deaccelerate?
Probably just like modern spacecraft do. They turn around and burn with their main engines.

Posted: 2004-04-22 11:06am
by Cal Wright
You might want to search the Technical Commentaries. You have to take into account that we've never seen them reverse by turning the ship. They come out of hyperspace and immediately halt. In RotJ they come from the far side of the forest moon and hold position. They have to have some form of thrusters to slow them down, you just don't see them fired. maybe because thier small enough and spaced enough. Just a guess, but like I said hit the Tech Comm.

Posted: 2004-04-22 11:09am
by Knife
Acceleration Compensators or a tech closely related might be utilized not only to protect the crew from massive G's for acceleration and deceleration but might also be used to help (read stop/slow in this instance) a vessel in high G manuvers.

Posted: 2004-04-22 12:18pm
by Batman
Knife wrote:Acceleration Compensators or a tech closely related might be utilized not only to protect the crew from massive G's for acceleration and deceleration but might also be used to help (read stop/slow in this instance) a vessel in high G manuvers.
Case in point:Luke used his accelleration compensators to come to a dead stop in HttE.
While this manouver 'did' severly damage his hyperdrive, that may simply be a function of the 'rate' of decelleration instead of a principle problem.
At any rate, it shows such a use of ACs is generally feasible.

OTOH, they may use such simple things as thrust reversers...

Posted: 2004-04-22 02:20pm
by FTeik
Acceleration-Compensator sounds right (it produces the counterforce to the acceleration-force after all (please god, i hope i said that right)).

Any idea how reversethrust could work in space and on a vessel like a star destroyer?

Posted: 2004-04-22 04:09pm
by Connor MacLeod
Accel compensators are the same thing as inertial dampers (Boba Fett did the same thing in TBH and the SOTE comic to stop/.slow himself). Repulsors probably could be used to decelerate o approaches to any sort of mass (another ship, a planet, etc.)

Firing the ship's weapons probably can be used for deceleration purposes as well (via recoil), at least in combat situations)

Posted: 2004-04-22 05:42pm
by Grand Admiral Thrawn
Could they use some insane thrust vectoring to get thrust forward?

Posted: 2004-04-22 06:00pm
by Kurgan
In "Ernest Saves Christmas" Santa's Sleigh has "air brakes."

Perhaps there's something similar at work here? ; )

Posted: 2004-04-22 06:09pm
by Batman
FTeik wrote: Any idea how reversethrust could work in space and on a vessel like a star destroyer?
Err-the same way they work on a modern jet aircraft? With the possible exception of replacing the material parts with particle shields?
I admit I've never seen anything thrust reverserish-looking around an ISD's engines, but then I've never bothered looking.

Posted: 2004-04-22 06:58pm
by YT300000
Knife wrote:Acceleration Compensators or a tech closely related might be utilized not only to protect the crew from massive G's for acceleration and deceleration but might also be used to help (read stop/slow in this instance) a vessel in high G manuvers.
And would explain why SW fighters maneuver like in space as if they were in an atmosphere.

Posted: 2004-04-22 11:24pm
by Connor MacLeod
YT300000 wrote:
Knife wrote:Acceleration Compensators or a tech closely related might be utilized not only to protect the crew from massive G's for acceleration and deceleration but might also be used to help (read stop/slow in this instance) a vessel in high G manuvers.
And would explain why SW fighters maneuver like in space as if they were in an atmosphere.
How?

Posted: 2004-04-22 11:27pm
by Spanky The Dolphin
If anything, they'd behave less like atmospheric craft in space.

Posted: 2004-04-23 12:35am
by Connor MacLeod
Spanky The Dolphin wrote:If anything, they'd behave less like atmospheric craft in space.
Gee really? I didn't know that. :roll: (What did I say before about contributing superfluous detail?)

Posted: 2004-04-23 12:39am
by Spanky The Dolphin
That was directed at YT, not you, since it was clear that he didn't know.

Apologies for not clarifying.

Posted: 2004-04-23 01:30am
by Connor MacLeod
Spanky The Dolphin wrote:That was directed at YT, not you, since it was clear that he didn't know.

Apologies for not clarifying.
Why? He's right that they do behave like fighters in atmospheres (to certain extents) in space.. in the movies. I'm questioning why he assumes that Acceleration compensators somehow explain for this.

Posted: 2004-04-23 01:42am
by Spanky The Dolphin
Forget it...

Posted: 2004-04-23 04:44am
by Rogue 9
FTeik wrote:Any idea how reversethrust could work in space and on a vessel like a star destroyer?
It wouldn't. Nothing in space to reverse; that'd only work in atmosphere. Besides, its not like the Star Destroyer has intakes. :wink:

Posted: 2004-04-23 05:35am
by HRogge
Grand Admiral Thrawn wrote:Could they use some insane thrust vectoring to get thrust forward?
It would be the same ANY modern plane is doing... only that a ISD most likely use a forcefield to redirect it's engine thrust. If necessary by 180 °.

Posted: 2004-04-23 07:23am
by Jon
Rogue 9 wrote:
FTeik wrote:Any idea how reversethrust could work in space and on a vessel like a star destroyer?
It wouldn't. Nothing in space to reverse; that'd only work in atmosphere. Besides, its not like the Star Destroyer has intakes. :wink:
Indeed but afaik referse thrust does't work by switching the engines to reverse, instead there are deployable metal wings, which are used to divert engine exhaust forward as a deceleration aid. But it is primarly used for just that, deceleration, and the thrust is fed away into useless directions, mainly to the side. Braking comes from the fact that the engine is consuming larger amounts of air and drag is a side effect.

So um, yup- no reverse thrust in space in the sense we know of it.

Posted: 2004-04-23 11:15am
by Coalition
I figured they had small thrusters mounted forwards, and hidden behind the armor. More like a docking thruster than anything tactically useful. If they are too far to worry about thrust effects, the ship can just do a 180, and use its main engines.

If they are too close to the destination, and moving too fast, the Captain screwed up. They can always change their course, to avoid whateer is in their path, hopefully.

If not, they have to change their angle, and hyper out to someplace empty (~1 ly away). They then slow down, reorient, and come in safely.

Posted: 2004-04-23 12:26pm
by Connor MacLeod
Ion cannons could also very well double as ion thrusters.

Posted: 2004-04-23 12:57pm
by Howedar
Jon wrote:Indeed but afaik referse thrust does't work by switching the engines to reverse, instead there are deployable metal wings, which are used to divert engine exhaust forward as a deceleration aid. But it is primarly used for just that, deceleration, and the thrust is fed away into useless directions, mainly to the side. Braking comes from the fact that the engine is consuming larger amounts of air and drag is a side effect.

So um, yup- no reverse thrust in space in the sense we know of it.
Thrust reversers do in fact get some thrust foreward. The exhaust is vectored to something like 15 degrees foreward of sideways.

Posted: 2004-04-23 03:17pm
by PainRack
What about gravitic drives? Repulsorlifts? Mumbo jumbo latching on to planets and slowing oneself down? :wink:

Posted: 2004-04-23 03:36pm
by Connor MacLeod
Star Wars doesnt have gravitic drives (in the sense of a reactionless dirve, a'la Minbari war cruisers) - the closest thing are repulsors and tracor beams, and in such cases you need a nearby mass to push against