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We all watch Star Trek (as a properly qualified nerd you do watch it, right??) and wish we could zip around space at the superluminal speeds that they do. It gives the impression that they can go anywhere they like. However, in truth, even going from one side of our Milky Way galaxy to the other, about 105000 light years, would take years at fastest warp. Our galaxy is just one of about 125 billion just in the observable universe too, all spaced many light years apart and many way bigger than ours and you get an idea of just how limited even a Star Trek style warp drive is, so flying around the universe is still a no-go even in the Star Trek universe.
To their credit, the creators of ST (any series) understood this and didn't attempt to give the impression that there was no limit to distance. Take Voyager, stuck in the delta quadrant, a "mere" 70000 light years from home, took years to return, spawning 7 glorious seasons in the process.
Incidentally, black holes would be a real menace to any would-be warp speed traveller, as they can't be seen unless they're munching on an accretion disk. And no, even a warp drive at full speed can't get out of one if it crosses the event horizon, because all directions within it lead to the singularity, a nightmare scenario of certain doom. Backwards travel in time would be required for that one. Good luck.
The article has some interesting videos to demonstrate the problem. Check it out.
To their credit, the creators of ST (any series) understood this and didn't attempt to give the impression that there was no limit to distance. Take Voyager, stuck in the delta quadrant, a "mere" 70000 light years from home, took years to return, spawning 7 glorious seasons in the process.
Incidentally, black holes would be a real menace to any would-be warp speed traveller, as they can't be seen unless they're munching on an accretion disk. And no, even a warp drive at full speed can't get out of one if it crosses the event horizon, because all directions within it lead to the singularity, a nightmare scenario of certain doom. Backwards travel in time would be required for that one. Good luck.
The article has some interesting videos to demonstrate the problem. Check it out.
Former NASA Scientist Demonstrates Why Star Trek's Warp Speeds Are Painfully Slow
To slowly go where no human has gone before.
www.sciencealert.com