The time has come for me to start thinking about conflicts in space.
There aren’t a lot of modern-day space fights for my writing to emulate, but there are some interesting methods and technologies that I can “science fictionalize”. Now, I just have to figure out which modern approaches can be applied to space.
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Adapting Real-World Weaponry for Sci-Fi Spaceship
Let’s start with vomit guns!
Okay, they’re not officially called vomit guns. Their official name is LED Incapacitator. And, to be clear, this is a weapon meant for one-on-one personal encounters. What I find interesting about these for space fights, though, is the sensory confusion aspect.
This non-lethal weapon emits a strobing light in various colors, which confuses the brain. The victim is temporarily blinded, and in some instances, compelled to vomit. And, while a flashing light is not the most effective space weapon, this sensory confusion notion can be powerful when you stop to think about how much modern-day aircraft have needed to adapt to and shield against electromagnetic interference.
Confusion of ship sensor arrays could result in disabled communication and navigation components, which are vital elements of a spaceship. Sensory-based non-lethal weapons have great potential for ships that may be designed more for escape or intimidation rather than brute force.
For ships needing a lethal weapons option, I found that electromagnetic energy is pretty versatile. High power electromagnetic energy is also the basis for directed energy weapons (DEWs). Electromagnetic energy is radiant energy that travels in waves at the speed of light, and being high powered means that it can be discharged quickly.
In short, we’re talking about laser weapons, which can melt steel. And we’re talking about microwave and millimeter wave weapons, which can affect multiple targets simultaneously. What’s helpful here is that the effect of a DEW can be adjusted to disable, damage, or destroy a target just by adjusting the blast duration, distance, and targeting point. Plus, they don’t run out of ammo. Well, not exactly. They do still need to be powered.
Directed energy weapons need a significant amount of power, and on a spaceship, power can be limited. That said, Earth, the sun, and the ionosphere all naturally radiate electromagnetic fields. And there has been research showing that simple devices can generate electric currents from Earth’s surface.
If I look at all of this through the fiction lens of science fiction, I can create a world in which ships’ weapons–and maybe even ships–are powered by the stars and planets they move around. So designing a spacecraft with a DEW means onboard resources can be used efficiently, and a sleek design can be maintained for ships that need to be highly maneuverable.
Towing Disabled Spaceships
When I started researching this topic, I was worldbuilding patrol ships that guard a planet’s proximal space. Weapons that disable, damage, and destroy are perfect for this elite force. However, the Pallas’s Class Interdiction Prowlers (PCIPs) are investigatory by nature. If, for instance, they encounter someone with no flight plans and no functioning radio, interrogation, rather than destruction, may be the best course of action. So, let’s say they disable a suspicious ship …then what?
The concept for the RemoveDEBRIS mission has potential here. Essentially, RemoveDEBRIS was a Surrey Space Centre R&D mission that showed how space debris can be captured using a net or a harpoon. The debris would, then, be tethered and draggeds through the atmosphere, where it would burn up.
Obviously, an interrogation subject wouldn’t be pulled through the atmosphere. But this technology could potentially be used to tow a disabled ship to an interrogation facility. And if there are, let’s say, “space stations” responsible for monitoring designated sectors and dispatching Prowlers to engage potential threats, these stations can also deploy “nets” and serve as interrogation centers when Prowlers disable ships. Thus, the PCIPs don't have to bear the burden of disposing of the space debris they create, and the patrol officer can leave expediently to check out the next anomaly.
These PCIPs are really shaping up. I think I have something workable here. Next, I’ll need to look at other ship design aspects for hostile situations.
Until next time, stay curious.
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