User:Kelduum Revaan/Propulsion

A question which is commonly asked by new capsuleers is just how the different propulsion systems work on modern vessels. These subjects are not covered by the base capsuleer training as they do not effect the actual usage of the ship, however they are listed here for those interested.

Sub-light Propulsion

Maneuvering

Maneuvering in New Eden is somewhat complicated compared to archaic models of spaceflight, due to the dense nebula which makes up the star-cluster. While this means there is always abundant fuel available, it requires significant energy expenditure to maneuver at speed within a star-system.

The best way of explaining sub-light movement is to compare it to movement though a liquid - the nebula creates a 'bow-wave' with any movement, which would cause a significant level of friction on the hull of any non-shielded vessel in motion. This is negated by complex deflector fields which are shaped into a complex configuration around the ship. These effectively 'part' the nebula, however this requires significant energy expenditure,

This means that a vessels top speeds is limited by the amount of energy which can be utilized to maintain the deflector fields, with larger vessels needing more energy to move at speed, resulting in smaller ships typically being faster and more maneuverable.

The pressure built up by this movement also means that ships must continually run their engines to stay in motion, and shutting down a ships engines will see it slow to a stop. Similarly, the deflector field must be maintained continuously, as a catastrophic failure of the field at most velocities would result in the pressure exerted on the ship crushing it instantly.

These requirements also mean that modern ships are only able to move 'forward' at non-trivial speeds as the combination of the field emitters must be aligned properly. While it would be theoretically possible to construct a vessel which could move in any direction without turning, the extra mass of the engines, field emitters and support technology would require a significantly larger power core, making this configuration inefficient.

By comparison, in non-capsuleer vessels, the field geometry must be continuously adjusted by the ships field engineer, however in a capsuleer operated vessels, this is operated by the pilots subconscious, allowing higher speed and better maneuverability than non-capsuleer vessels with increased levels of skill training.

Inter-system Travel

Due to solar pressure, the nebula density increases dramatically beyond the borders of each star-system, making inter-system travel using Afterburner, MicroWarpdrive or Warp Drive travel unsustainable with current technology, in effect making inter-system travel without the use of stargates or Jump-drives massively inefficient.

Fuel

While there are a number of propulsion methods available, each expending fuel to move the vessel, all of them utilize the local nebula itself to provide a fuel source.

Using the defector field, a small amount of material is magnetically funneled to vents on the the ship where is collected and processed into usable material, with any non-suitable material reprocessed and stored for later usage or ejected with the ships exhaust.

Using this method, the typical vessel kept in good order never needs to refuel (although it would still need to periodically take-on consumable for the crew), and in the event the intake or processing systems are damaged, the typical ship holds sufficient fuel for approximately 72 hours of running at full speed.

Propulsion Methods

Sub-light propulsion is classed as any movement which does not utilize a an FTL warp tunnel, including Afterburner and MicroWarpdrive usage.

Impulse

Ship impulse maneuvering systems include both the ships drive used to maneuver in normal space.

Each factions ships typically use one of four propulsion methods, which have generally the same propulsion 'strength', although this does effect the color of the engine exhaust seen. While there are a number of exceptions (pirate-constructed ships, some joint-ventures and a number of Tech 2 ships).

Fusion

Amarr vessels typically use Fusion propulsion systems, resulting in a blue engine glow and exhaust. This method uses what is effectively a magnetically constrained nuclear explosion to project the ship forward. Due to anti-pollution rulings in the CONCORD Yulai Convention, the excess electromagnetic radiation caused by this system must be dealt with by the by the vessel, resulting in the relatively heavy reflective armor used to protect key systems, and resulting in significant proportion of the ships shield emitters used to collect the waste particulates.

Ion

Ion propulsion is usually used by Gallente ships, and can be identified by a blue engine 'glow' with a narrow yellow exhaust. This propulsion method uses a pulsed beam of ions to create thrust which is visible in the 'pulsed' effect of the exhaust, however this requires significant power generation meaning Gallente vessels typically have a physically larger spherical propulsion core, leading to the design of the typical Gallente ship appearing more rounded compared to other factions to accommodate the core.

Magpulse

Due to their history with the Gallente, Caldari vessels often use a similar propulsion method - Magnetic Pulse propulsion, typically referred to as Magpulse. This is widely similar to the Gallente system, producing a very similar visual effect, with a blue glow and yellow pulsed exhaust. However, this system requires a linear propulsion core, leading to the typical 'square' appearance of Caldari ships, but with the side effect of the shield emitters being able to use some of the excess energy to produce stronger shielding than rival races.

Plasma

Typically used by Minmatar vessels, 'plasma' propulsion produces a signature orange/red exhaust. Although most of modern propulsion systems use plasma in one form or another, the Minmatar system is significantly less refined, being somewhat similar to the archaic 'rocket' engines used in children's toys and early spaceflight, demonstrated in the less constrained exhaust produced. Despite this, it is not uncommon for Minmatar produced vessels to reach higher top speeds than those of other factions.

Other Methods

Jove

Jove vessels (including the Jove designed and constructed CONCORD Drones) use another propulsion method which despite trillions of ISK of research, is still not fully understood. It is suspected the system used is intrinsically linked to their apparent ability to travel at significantly greater FTL speeds than seen by other ships, and recent leaked (but unconfirmed) information suggests they use an entirely different method, with the 'engines' on the ships simply being for 'show'. No comment has been forthcoming on this matter.

Pirate

As they are not bound by the Yulai Convention, and therefore do not have to follow CONCORD regulations, pirate vessels will often have hybrid propulsion systems, allowing speeds greater than what is normally attainable using sanctioned methods. These will however usually mean the ships safeguards such as onboard fail-safes and fuel reserves are compromised, and pollution requirements are not met - due to this, and the relative limited available of capsuleer adapted pirate vessels, coupled with the primary users being outlaws, CONCORD usually disregard these infractions.

Afterburner

While the modules are named 'Afterburner' after the systems used on atmospheric vehicles to burn unspent fuel in the exhaust of a jet engine, and they have a similar effect, this is somewhat of a misnomer.

In effect, the modules in question actually expend energy from the ships power core to increase the propulsion efficiency, effectively running the ships impulse drive systems at greater than normal levels. In order to do this, the magnetic containment of the engine must be reinforced significantly, power input to the the deflector field must be substantially increased, as well as the structural integrity of the ships hull itself to prevent catastrophic damage to the emitter mounts.

This has the effect of significantly increasing the maximum velocity of the ship, while also increasing the effective mass considerably, making turns much slower and slowing acceleration.

While a module of this type can be used indefinitely, when travelling at greater than normal velocity, the fuel scoop cannot be used to replenish the reserves, which will typically expire after approximately 24 hours, at which point the vessel would then need to slow to normal impulse speeds.

MicroWarpdrive

The MicroWarpdrive, typically referred to by capsuleers as an 'MWD', is a system which uses elements of both FTL and 'Afterburner' propulsion systems.

This operates by using the warp drive to form a warp containment field around the vessel, distorting space around the ship, thereby reducing the effective pressure on the deflector field. The ships structure and drive-core are then reinforced in the same methods as an afterburner, allowing much higher speeds than are conventionally available, but only with the same fuel requirements as the afterburner.

However, maintaining this effect for more than a few seconds is incredibly energy intensive, depleting the capacitor of most ships within minutes, and safety guidelines mean that simply having the MicroWarpdrive module fitted to a ship means a significant proportion of the ships power generation systems must be reserved for its usage, effectively reducing the capacitor storage of the vessel.

With the massive expenditure of energy involved, usage of the MicroWarpdrive also significantly increases the effective signature radius of any ship using it, making it easier to target. Also, like the Afterburner, the MicroWarpdrive cannot run in parallel with the fuel scoop, however this is less of a concern as a vessels capacitor will often be depleted within minutes of activating the module.