Posted by dlevine2100 on
URL: https://www.shado-forum.com/Conflict-tp1497792p1497797.html

--- In SHADO@y..., "Ron DeMedeiros" <rjdshado@a...> wrote:
> Conflict has always been one of my favorite episodes. One change I
would
> have made to the script to make it more accurate is to have the
limpets fire
> a rocket to put the space junk on a trajectory to reenter the
atmosphere and
> burn up.
>
> The process of blowing up the space junk actually exacerbates the
problem
> because you create a high quantity of small debris. A small piece
of debris
> traveling at 17,000 + mph can do some serious damage.
>

Well, if you want be more accurate... the whole concept of the UFO
device hiding behind space trash waiting for the lunar module to
pass by is very unreal. In reality, you would like to pass several
miles away from any known space trash. And in the event you happen
to pass near something, the encounter relative velocity is likely to
be several thousand MPH. In the episode, you get the idea that
things in space are semi-static or move very slowly with respect to
each other. Also, the idea that Straker and Freeman, just by looking
at the poster that had a description of space junk, could determine
the probable space junk behind the incident, is very far fetched
(someone would need to know the exact positions of the junk when the
incident happened, and would probably need to do several
calculations). Also, it would be impossible for Foster to recreate
the previous flight. He could have flown the same exact trajectory,
but all of earth's artificial satellites would had been in different
positions.

This also reminds me about something very implausible in Computer
Affair. The probability of two objects, with huge relative
velocities, each one with a size smaller than a truck, colliding in
the vastness of space would be infinitesimal (even if you tried to
smash them on purpose). But this is for another episode...

David Levine