Starships In The Near Future

Are you among those people who are great fan of watching science fiction genre movies? If you are then of course you know about the biggest titles ever featured in this category. The Star Wars franchise is so far the most popular and almost already generic term which has even become a household common adjective to most. Star Trek is another famous title that comes close to the present reality than Star Wars, where earth still exists and the existence of planets and interstellar infrastructure are not yet that complex or convoluted. New titles of science fiction also touched the memory of patrons and lovers of this genre. The Avatar is among the newest science fiction epic that swept the cinema industry. Other titles that also made their marks are Dune Series, Serenity, and Starship Troopers.

Let me ask you then, what is something common in these titles? Can you identify the connection among the titles I have posted? The common idea or element behind these science fiction films is that it features interstellar voyages. Interstellar means traveling from one star or solar system to another. Therefore, all of these films feature ‘star ships’ in their usual environment.

What are star ships then? They are vessels used in traveling through another solar system. It has been already widely accepted in the cosmic scientific community that there are hundreds of galaxies beyond our own. Think of star ships as the 15th century ocean-sailing Imperial galleons during the Age of Exploration. However, what these star ships is neither massive canvas sails, steam, coal, or crude oil. What fuels interstellar vehicles called star ships is the element called antimatter.

Since the discovery and application of positrons, the counterpart of positive electrons, research of the antimatter has been heightened to such extent. Only recently, it has been announced that scientists have already found a way to create and even store antimatter in larger quantities than ever known.

The reason why antimatter is believed to be the source of fuel that makes interstellar travel possible is because antimatter is considered to be the element possessing the most concentrated energy. If thermonuclear bombs only uses 1 percent, antimatter uses 99 percent more concentration. Most scientist who succeeded in these findings believed that antimatter is no doubt the only candidate to achieving the unthinkable.

Sooner, when large quantities of antimatter can already be stored, and its element already scientifically proven to be applicable in actual usage, then humanity will embark on another discovery. After all, during the Middle Ages, European peoples believed that going beyond the Straits of Gibraltar is unthinkable as all ships will descend to the bottomless void at the edge of the world. They were proven wrong by bold brilliant navigators who became the pioneers of the Age of Exploration. The same might be happening now, where scientific theories and postulations are often thought outlandish due to the indulgence of fictional media and reluctance of the neoconservative religious communities. History repeats itself. The same thing could be said in the matter of human discovery where interstellar voyage seemed to be among the biggest highlights. But what lies in the future still remains to be seen.

write by FREDERICK ELLIS