Despite my recent rant on Transformers 2, one cool scene was the use of the rail gun on Devastator. Well, it appears that it's not just sci-fi or a rumor. On December 10, a Navy test produced a 33 megajoule finding. To quote the article, "A single megajoule is roughly equivalent to a 1-ton car traveling at 100 mph." Remember, the rail gun does not use an explosive projectile. The destruction uses nothing but kinetic energy. The weapon is expected to be able to hit a target 100 miles away (compared to the current range of about 13 miles by current Navy guns.
So, if you're writing an urban science fiction story with a rail gun. I'm sorry, but it's no longer science fiction.
Next. For all the Star Trek, fans here's an article that has found new plausibility in teleportation/transporter theories. But rather than breaking down a subject's molecular structure, transforming it to energy and transmitting/beaming it to a location where it's reassembled, the theory follows new quantum physics theories on parallel universes. Not only do these theories bring new light on teleportation, but time travel. To be honest, it's all a bit too complex for me to really translate but I plan on keeping my eyes open for more articles like this.
Now think of the application in science fiction technology. Not only do you have a credible basis for teleportation technology, but you could bring parallel universes into it.
So, do your research and
Write On
Rail guns have been around for awhile, the problem being that heat build up and ware an tare on the components due to massive plasma build up inside the barrel (heat and electromechanics charge used to push the ferrous slug creates superheated plasma). So far they can fire it once, and then.....
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