The DE-STAR proposal as envisaged by the University of California. Source: Supplied
- Read the full University of California report here
- "Duck and cover is not an option", researchers say
- Satellite defence system will redirect Sun's energy
BARELY a month after the White House rejected a petition to build a Death Star, a group of Californian scientists have pushed the idea forward again.
Instead of blasting rebellious planets, their proposed DE-STAR project is intended to be a "realistic" project to vaporise asteroids that pose a threat to Earth.
They've chosen the timing of their pitch well after last week's meteor explosion over Russia and a close shave with a potential killer asteroid.
University of California physicist Philip M. Lubin and California Polytechnic State University researcher Gary B. Hughes unveiled a series of proposals for their Directed Energy Solar Targeting of Asteroids and exploRation (DE-STAR for short).
While not quite at the scale or strength of its Star Wars namesake, some of the proposals get close. And they're designed to be more realistic than the Kickstarter campaign to build a Death Star replica.
All versions of the DE-STAR satellites would gather energy from the Sun and direct an array of lasers at approaching objects.
"We have to come to grips with discussing these issues in a logical and rational way," said Professor Lubin. "We need to be proactive rather than reactive in dealing with threats. Duck and cover is not an option."
The cheapest option incorporates a series of desktop-computer satellites. At the other end of the scale is a massive orbital city capable of propelling spacecraft over interstellar distances.
Original idea: The plans for the Imperial Death Star that featured in Star Wars.
"This system is not some far-out idea from Star Trek," Hughes said. "All the components of this system pretty much exist today. Maybe not quite at the scale that we'd need scaling up would be the challenge but the basic elements are all there and ready to go."
One of the proposals is an International Space Station sized satellite named DE-STAR 2. This would be capable of nudging large asteroids into safe orbits.
DE-STAR 4 weighs in at 100 times the size of the existing space station, this system could vaporise a rock within a year.
DE-STAR 6 is the most ambitious: "DE-STAR 6 could enable interstellar travel by functioning as a massive, orbiting power source and propulsion system for spacecraft. It could propel a 10-ton spacecraft at near the speed of light, allowing interstellar exploration to become a reality without waiting for science fiction technology such as "warp drive" to come along," Professor Lubin said.
Our cruiser's cannot repel firepower of that magnitude! Admiral Akbar dare not consider attacking planet Earth if we're defended by the DE-STAR.
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