On 15 Jun 2020 at 23:29, Richard Aiken wrote:

> IMTU, I make jump drives for larger volumes progressively less
> efficient. That is, the jump drives get larger and more power-hungry,
> the larger the hull being jump becomes. A 5000 dton hull is as big as
> you can get and still have a jump-capable vessel (after installing
> everything else a ship needs to function).

Silly thought. We know you can make a ship that uses drop tanks for
jump fuel. So how about one where the jump fuel tankage *and power
plant* are external?

Fire up the power plant, run the fuel thru and disconect from the
ship which then jumps.

Put you in a bit of a bind if you get a misjump, but otherwise I
don't see any major problems (assuming it is possible at all).

Be useful for bulk cargo and possibly some military uses. Keeps some
of the more expensive parts of the ship "at home" and usable for
multiple ships.

For two way traffic you'd need one at each end of the jump.

Not sure what to call it. It's sort of an intermediate step between a
normal ship and a jump gate. I think "jump tug" is already taken.

Maybe jump catapult?
--
Leonard Erickson (aka shadow)
shadow at shadowgard dot com