Topic: Myths About Space Travel That Make Science Fiction Better

[ting-bu-dong]

We all love to point out the ridiculous bad physics in science fiction — it's like an awesome sport that everybody wins. (Except physics.) But the truth is, sometimes you have to violate the laws of physics to create science fiction stories that people want to watch. We asked six great physicists to name their favorite occasions when breaking the laws of physics makes science fiction better, and here's what they told us.

http://io9.com/5936924/10-myths-about-space-travel-that-make-science-fiction-better

[Ah.hell]

The obvious one is Faster than light travel.

[jaypee]

I was thinking about this the other day.. and while it's not really about space travel, I was thinking about how hard it would be to make a watchable space battle if the director didn't ignore the fact that sound doesn't travel in space. Yeah, I know in the back of my head that when the Vipers on BSG are firing their machine guns there shouldn't be any sound, and that when the Raiders launch their missiles I shouldn't be able to hear it, but I can't really imagine the action sequences be as exciting without those sound effects.

[David E.]

A thing that was not mentioned is that the amount of energy expenditure to even have a space battle would pretty much make the space battle pointless, or impossible.

[PANTS!]

I was thinking about this the other day.. and while it's not really about space travel, I was thinking about how hard it would be to make a watchable space battle if the director didn't ignore the fact that sound doesn't travel in space. Yeah, I know in the back of my head that when the Vipers on BSG are firing their machine guns there shouldn't be any sound, and that when the Raiders launch their missiles I shouldn't be able to hear it, but I can't really imagine the action sequences be as exciting without those sound effects.

It worked fabulously on Firefly.  No less intense, and perhaps moreso since it made it more confusing and chaotic without the standard audio cues.

[jaypee]

I was thinking about this the other day.. and while it's not really about space travel, I was thinking about how hard it would be to make a watchable space battle if the director didn't ignore the fact that sound doesn't travel in space. Yeah, I know in the back of my head that when the Vipers on BSG are firing their machine guns there shouldn't be any sound, and that when the Raiders launch their missiles I shouldn't be able to hear it, but I can't really imagine the action sequences be as exciting without those sound effects.

It worked fabulously on Firefly.  No less intense, and perhaps moreso since it made it more confusing and chaotic without the standard audio cues.

I haven't watched FireFly in several years, but I don't recall the space battles in that series being as frequent or as complex and large-scale as the battles in BSG.

[ting-bu-dong]

The lack of atmosphere can make space scenes (not limited to battles) more exciting by removing the audience from what they are used to. The opening sequence of Mass Effect 2 was all the more effective and atmospheric because at one point you transition from a burning wreck of a space ship to the dead silence of space and back again, all within a minute.

[jaypee]

The lack of atmosphere can make space scenes (not limited to battles) more exciting by removing the audience from what they are used to. The opening sequence of Mass Effect 2 was all the more effective and atmospheric because at one point you transition from a burning wreck of a space ship to the dead silence of space and back again, all within a minute.

Again, not disagreeing really. I just don't know if someone could pull off shooting an extended battle sequence which didn't involve explosions and sound effects. There are definitely situations in which emphasizing the lack of sound can add impact to a scene, but I think not having it in a long action sequence would be hard to watch.

[David E.]

Reality is not as entertaining.

[JuniorSpaceman]

Again, not disagreeing really. I just don't know if someone could pull off shooting an extended battle sequence which didn't involve explosions and sound effects. There are definitely situations in which emphasizing the lack of sound can add impact to a scene, but I think not having it in a long action sequence would be hard to watch.

In an extended scene, there could be a place for the musical score to add to the scene without using explosions and shouting. I can't think of any movies which do this, and the only non-space examples in my head are those overwrought 'silence+score' battlefield scenes with the slow motion death of characters.

[ting-bu-dong]

You can cut back and forth between silent space and the interiors of ships with explosions, shouting and chaos. Surely there are movies set on submarines that basically do this?

My main point is that treating space battles like naval battles with lasers cheapens them because it robs them of what makes them unique. And I think the majority of viewers wouldn't care as long as the drama was done well.

[arthwollipot]

Another aspect of space battles is that ships aren't normally free to move about as they wish. In most cases they will be confined to orbits around the nearest primary mass.

http://gizmodo.com/5426453/the-physics-of-space-battles

[Zytheran]

Another one is the size of spacecraft. In the movies spacecraft always have lots of room inside. Evidently the laws of economics go out the window with most of the laws of physics. In reality spacecraft will always be the minimise size needed, they will be tight and cramped. However if you assume you can have antigravity everyting becomes a moot point anyway so meh.

[ting-bu-dong]

Artificial gravity is one of those things you just have to have to tell the story, like with easy FTL.

One of the coolest space battle I have read was in Forever War, where space battles are fought at relativistic speeds at vast distances and have a complexity that means not deferring to a tactical computer is suicide. Also, because of relativistic effects interstellar wars frequently go on for centuries and are fought between ships from different eras even though in their crews' frames of reference the war has been on for only a few weeks.

Try telling that sort of story in a visual medium like TV or a movie.

[Vincegamer]

I was thinking about this the other day.. and while it's not really about space travel, I was thinking about how hard it would be to make a watchable space battle if the director didn't ignore the fact that sound doesn't travel in space. Yeah, I know in the back of my head that when the Vipers on BSG are firing their machine guns there shouldn't be any sound, and that when the Raiders launch their missiles I shouldn't be able to hear it, but I can't really imagine the action sequences be as exciting without those sound effects.

It worked fabulously on Firefly.  No less intense, and perhaps moreso since it made it more confusing and chaotic without the standard audio cues.

I haven't watched FireFly in several years, but I don't recall the space battles in that series being as frequent or as complex and large-scale as the battles in BSG.

the movie Serenity has one of the best space battle scenes ever filmed, but most of that enters atmosphere and so there are sounds, but I seem to recall some nice scenes of silence in space as ships moved around chasing each other.

It's been a while, but I seem to recall Stargate SG-1 had a massive silent space battle scene when the Orai ships came through the giant stargate and Sam floated there in her space suit watching all the ships blow up, leaving her stranded drifting without a vehicle.