Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine: Difference between revisions

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(Think the renaming thing was settled ... ?)
(Merged back from "slipspace drive" page (a split I once created for some reason). Much clearer this way.)
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{{Quote|They have opened a path to the stars for all of us.|Dedication to Tobias Fleming Shaw, ScD, QeD, FRS (January 30, 2220 - November 10, 2317), and Wallace Fujikawa ScD, QEnD (April 20, 2215 - February 18, 2318)<ref name="Orbital">'''[[Halo 3]]''', multiplayer level ''[[Orbital (level)|Orbital]]''</ref>}}
{{Quote|They have opened a path to the stars for all of us.|Dedication to Tobias Fleming Shaw, ScD, QeD, FRS (January 30, 2220 - November 10, 2317), and Wallace Fujikawa ScD, QEnD (April 20, 2215 - February 18, 2318)<ref name="Orbital">'''[[Halo 3]]''', multiplayer level ''[[Orbital (level)|Orbital]]''</ref>}}


The '''Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine''' ('''SFTE'''), colloquially known as the '''[[slipspace drive]]''' and '''FTL drive''', is a [[human]] spacecraft propulsion system capable of making transitions to and from [[slipstream space]] and by extension allowing faster-than-light interstellar travel.
The '''Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine''' ('''SFTE'''), colloquially known as the '''slipspace drive''' and '''FTL drive''', is a spacecraft propulsion system capable of making transitions to and from [[slipstream space]] and by extension allowing faster-than-light interstellar travel. The device functions by creating ruptures between normal space and slipspace.<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', ''page 141''</ref> The nonstandard physics of slipspace allow it to be used as a shortcut realm, facilitating interstellar travel between distant regions in reasonable time.


==History==
==Human==
[[File:Shaw-Fujikawa Noble Prize.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Wallace Fujikawa and Tobias Fleming Shaw with their Nobel Prize for the discovery of Slipspace travel.]]
===History===
[[File:Shaw-Fujikawa Noble Prize.jpg|thumb|250px|Wallace Fujikawa and Tobias Fleming Shaw with their Nobel Prize for the discovery of Slipspace travel.]]


The engine was developed in secret by a group of engineers and theoretical physicists led by [[Tobias Fleming Shaw]] and [[Wallace Fujikawa]] and once complete, was unveiled in April [[2291]].<ref name="Orbital"/><ref>'''Halo Encyclopedia''', ''page 43'' (2011)</ref> From that point onward, the drive became one of the most important technological innovations of humanity.<ref name="Contact">'''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]''', ''page 24''</ref> The drive is not without limitations, however, although these may be partially because of slipstream physics rather than engineering imperfections. Prior to humanity's successful efforts in reverse-engineering [[Forerunner]] technology,<ref>'''Halo: Glasslands''', ''page 68''</ref> "short" slips would routinely take several weeks to months, while longer slips may take over half a year.<ref name="Contact"/>
The engine was developed in secret by a group of engineers and theoretical physicists led by [[Tobias Fleming Shaw]] and [[Wallace Fujikawa]] and once complete, was unveiled in April [[2291]].<ref name="Orbital"/><ref>'''Halo Encyclopedia''', ''page 43'' (2011)</ref> From that point onward, the drive became one of the most important technological innovations of humanity.<ref name="Contact">'''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]''', ''page 24''</ref> The drive is not without limitations, however, although these may be partially because of slipstream physics rather than engineering imperfections.


By [[2552]], a vast majority of large human spacecraft of sufficient size were equipped with a slipspace engine, including most, if not all of the [[UNSC Navy]]'s warships.
By [[2552]], a vast majority of large human spacecraft of sufficient size were equipped with a slipspace engine, including most, if not all of the [[UNSC Navy]]'s warships. Throughout much of humanity's colonial era and the [[Human-Covenant War]], the technology was still limited and jumps typically took from several weeks to months, with longer jumps taking over half a year.<ref name="Contact"/> By the end of the war, human advances in science and engineering, as well as captured Forerunner technology allowed for the construction of slipspace drives almost on par with those of the Covenant.<ref>'''Halo: Glasslands''', ''page 68''</ref> The {{UNSCShip|Infinity}} was capable of making slipspace transitions within an accuracy of one kilometer, and within one second of expected arrival time.<ref>'''Halo: The Thursday War''', ''page 247''</ref>
{{clear}}


==Functionality==
===Functionality===
[[File:FTLDrive.png|right|thumb|250px|The FTL drive from the ''[[UNSC Spirit of Fire|Spirit of Fire]]'' loaded aboard a transporter.]]
[[File:FTLDrive.png|left|thumb|250px|The FTL drive from the ''[[UNSC Spirit of Fire|Spirit of Fire]]'' loaded aboard a transporter.]]
The Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine functions by creating ruptures, referred to in some sources as wormholes, between normal space and an alternate plane known as slipspace (also known as slipstream space and Shaw-Fujikawa space<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', ''page 141''</ref>). The nonstandard physics of slipspace allow it to be used as a shortcut realm, facilitating interstellar travel between distant regions in reasonable time. The engine creates ruptures by using high-power cyclic particle accelerators to generate microscopic black holes. Because of their low mass, [[Hawking radiation]] gives them a lifetime of around a nanosecond (or potentially a little longer than a whole second)<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,483477,00.html?=done '''FoxNews''': ''Scientists Not So Sure 'Doomsday Machine' Won't Destroy World'']</ref> before they evaporate into useless thermal energy. In that nanosecond, the engine manipulates them into forming a coherent rupture between normal space and the slipstream.<ref name="Ghost">'''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''', ''page 53'' ([[Fred-104]]: ''"They had to repair the [drive] on the ''Magellan''. It was a risky op. Those things aren’t meant to be taken apart once they go active."'')</ref>
The Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engine functions by creating ruptures, referred to in some sources as wormholes, between normal space and an alternate plane known as slipspace (also known as slipstream space and Shaw-Fujikawa space<ref>'''[[Halo: The Fall of Reach]]''', ''page 141''</ref>). The nonstandard physics of slipspace allow it to be used as a shortcut realm, facilitating interstellar travel between distant regions in reasonable time. The engine creates ruptures by using high-power cyclic particle accelerators to generate microscopic black holes. Because of their low mass, [[Hawking radiation]] gives them a lifetime of around a nanosecond (or potentially a little longer than a whole second)<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,483477,00.html?=done '''FoxNews''': ''Scientists Not So Sure 'Doomsday Machine' Won't Destroy World'']</ref> before they evaporate into useless thermal energy. In that nanosecond, the engine manipulates them into forming a coherent rupture between normal space and the slipstream.<ref name="Ghost">'''[[Halo: Ghosts of Onyx]]''', ''page 53'' ([[Fred-104]]: ''"They had to repair the [drive] on the ''Magellan''. It was a risky op. Those things aren’t meant to be taken apart once they go active."'')</ref>


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the slipspace translations for a {{class|Phoenix|colony ship}} require 4.3 quadrillion calculations of the quantum field per second.<ref>'''Halo Wars: Genesis'''</ref>
the slipspace translations for a {{class|Phoenix|colony ship}} require 4.3 quadrillion calculations of the quantum field per second.<ref>'''Halo Wars: Genesis'''</ref>


A slipspace drive does not actually "accelerate" a spacecraft through slipstream space; this is performed by the ship's conventional reaction thrusters. Thus, ships with more powerful conventional engines are also faster within the slipstream.<ref>'''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]''', ''page 23''</ref> When active, a Shaw-Fujikawa engine emits alpha (helium nuclei) and beta (fast electrons) particles.<ref name="Ghosts">'''Halo: Ghost of Onyx''', ''pages 145-146''</ref> The coordination and plotting of slipspace jumps, referred to as [[astrogation]], requires an enormous amount of calculations which require a [[navigation computer]] or an [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] to successfully conduct.<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest''', ''page 96''</ref> However, the basic jump parameters can be calculated by a human.<ref>'''Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe''', ''"The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole"'', ''page 426''</ref>
A human slipspace drive does not actually "accelerate" a spacecraft through slipstream space; this is performed by the ship's conventional reaction thrusters. Thus, ships with more powerful conventional engines are also faster within the slipstream.<ref>'''[[Halo: Contact Harvest]]''', ''page 23''</ref> When active, a Shaw-Fujikawa engine emits alpha (helium nuclei) and beta particles (fast electrons).<ref name="Ghosts">'''Halo: Ghost of Onyx''', ''pages 145-146''</ref> The coordination and plotting of slipspace jumps, referred to as [[astrogation]], requires an enormous amount of calculations which require a [[navigation computer]] or an [[Artificial intelligence|AI]] to successfully conduct.<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest''', ''page 96''</ref> However, the basic jump parameters can be calculated by a human.<ref>'''Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe''', ''"The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole"'', ''page 426''</ref>


The elements [[Wikipedia:Selenium|Selenium]] and [[Wikipedia:Technetium|Technetium]] are used to manufacture Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engines. In the 2490's, the colony of [[Levosia]] was suspected of diverting said elements to the black market. The ensuing UNSC blockade of the system and the [[Insurrectionist]] reaction eventually led to the [[Callisto Incident]], which is said to have effectively sparked the [[Insurrection]].<ref>'''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''', ''[[The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole]]'', ''page 436''</ref>
The elements [[Wikipedia:Selenium|Selenium]] and [[Wikipedia:Technetium|Technetium]] are used to manufacture Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engines. In the 2490's, the colony of [[Levosia]] was suspected of diverting said elements to the black market. The ensuing UNSC blockade of the system and the [[Insurrectionist]] reaction eventually led to the [[Callisto Incident]], which is said to have effectively sparked the [[Insurrection]].<ref>'''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''', ''[[The Impossible Life and the Possible Death of Preston J. Cole]]'', ''page 436''</ref>
{{Clear}}
===Dangers and risks===
Human slipspace drives are considered black boxes which are very difficult to repair or maintain after they are activated for the first time.<ref name="Ghost"/> [[Kurt-051]] considered slipspace drives dangerous,<ref name="Ghost"/> noting the aforementioned radiation and that spacetime was said to distort around an active device. [[Catherine Halsey|Dr. Halsey]] also observed that in the past, several technicians had simply vanished while manually adjusting a drive.<ref name="Ghosts"/> A ruptured slipspace drive can create slipspace "splinters" in normal space, eventually consuming the drive and the entire ship which the drive was placed on.<ref>'''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''' - ''The Mona Lisa'', ''page 332''</ref> Mechanical failures like [[Slip Termination, Preventable]], or STP, can also occur with Slipspace drives, usually resulting from poor maintenance.<ref name="Contact"/> An improperly mounted Slipspace drive can also result in catastrophic accidents. This was the case with a colony ship en route to the [[Cygnus system]] around [[2550]]: as a result of a maintenance failure, the drive transported half the ship into oblivion, killing 700.<ref name="reach">'''[[Halo: Reach]]''', campaign level ''[[Long Night of Solace (level)|Long Night of Solace]]''</ref>
===Known models===
==== CODEN series====
CODEN is a series of Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engines employed on UNSC Naval warships. The Series IV was common in {{Class|Charon|light frigate}}.<ref name="bul10">http://blogs.halowaypoint.com/Headlines/post/2012/10/10/The-Halo-Bulletin-101012-.aspx[ '''Waypoint: The Halo Bulletin''': ''10.10.12'']</ref> The Series V was installed on the {{Class|Halcyon|light cruiser}} {{UNSCShip|Pillar of Autumn}} before it was deployed for its [[Operation: RED FLAG|final operation]].<ref>[http://halo.xbox.com/Content/assets/en-us/ONI/577839090903298928/DDR-A340024-1115-08-27-52.pdf '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Data Drop 5'']</ref>
==== Macedon ====
The first in its own class, the {{UNSCShip|Infinity}} is equipped with the Mark X Macedon/Z-PROTOTYPE #78720HDS.<ref name="bul10">[http://blogs.halowaypoint.com/Headlines/post/2012/10/10/The-Halo-Bulletin-101012-.aspx '''Waypoint''': ''The Halo Bulletin: 10.10.12'']</ref> This engine is Forerunner in origin and design.<ref>'''Spartan Ops''', ''[[S1/Catherine|S1E3 ''Catherine'']]</ref>
==== Saddle box ====
[[Saddle box]]es are rare, specialized slipspace drives built only by the UNSC for use in military experiments with slipstream space. They are commonly built to resemble commercial slipspace drives in order to be inconspicuous.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike (2010)''', ''[[Tug o' War]]''</ref>
==Covenant==
Being more technologically advanced than humanity, the [[Covenant]] have numerous advantages in slipspace propulsion systems. Whilst the human Shaw-Fujikawa engine is said to “punch” a hole between realms using brute force, Covenant engines instead take a small rupture and delicately enlarge it with surgical precision. This allows the latter to execute far more accurate slips.<ref>'''[[Halo: First Strike]]''', ''page 86''</ref> Covenant slipspace drives are often referred to as "jump drives".<ref>'''Halo: Contact Harvest''', ''page 136''</ref> In addition to their more powerful [[Repulsor engine|thruster engines]], it has been theorized by the UNSC that Covenant drives generate several "microjumps" within a single slipspace transition to measure the dilation involved in a jump, allowing them to reach their destinations faster.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike (2010)''', ''[[Tug o' War]]''</ref>
Covenant drives are generally more flexible and powerful than those of humans. They have thrice been seen to execute in-atmosphere slipspace transitions<ref>'''[[Halo: First Strike]]'''</ref><ref>'''[[Halo 2]]''', level ''[[Delta Halo (level)|Delta Halo]]''</ref> (although the first time the drive in question was controlled by [[Cortana|a human AI]]). In addition, Covenant drives can execute successful slips even if underpowered.


===Dangers and risks===
==Forerunner==
Human slipspace drives are considered black boxes which are very difficult to repair or maintain after they are activated for the first time.<ref name="Ghost"/> [[Kurt-051]] considered slipspace drives dangerous,<ref name="Ghost"/> noting the aforementioned radiation and that spacetime was said to distort around an active device. [[Catherine Elizabeth Halsey|Dr. Halsey]] also observed that in the past, several technicians had simply vanished while manually adjusting a drive.<ref name="Ghosts"/> A ruptured slipspace drive can create slipspace "splinters" in normal space, eventually consuming the drive and the entire ship which the drive was placed on.<ref>'''[[Halo: Evolutions - Essential Tales of the Halo Universe]]''' - ''The Mona Lisa'', ''page 332''</ref> Mechanical failures like [[Slip Termination, Preventable]], or STP, can also occur with Slipspace drives, usually resulting from poor maintenance.<ref name="Contact"/> An improperly mounted Slipspace drive can also result in catastrophic accidents. This was the case with a colony ship en route to the [[Cygnus system]] around [[2550]]: as a result of a maintenance failure, the drive transported half the ship into oblivion, killing 700.<ref name="reach">'''[[Halo: Reach]]''', campaign level ''[[Long Night of Solace (level)|Long Night of Solace]]''</ref>
Forerunner understanding of the mechanics of slipspace far exceeded that of the UNSC or the Covenant. They used [[Slipspace flake|small crystals]] embedded in their slipspace drives to manipulate slipspace,<ref>'''[[Halo: Cryptum]]''', ''page 124''</ref> allowing smoother transitions.<ref>'''Halo: Silentium''', ''pages 104-105''</ref> They had a superior grasp of reconciliation, the ability to automatically correct or otherwise manipulate the causal effects of slipspace travel.<ref>'''Halo: Primordium''', ''page 240''</ref> This was useful when carrying out large-scale coordinated military campaigns or simply moving across enormous distances.
 
Forerunner ships are also extremely fast, as seen when the ''[[Mantle's Approach]]'' was able to travel from the vicinity [[Installation 03]] to [[Earth]] in a matter of minutes. Forerunner ships rely on their energy shields to keep them safe during the journey unlike UNSC ships which rely on just their armor.<ref>'''[[Halo 4]]''', level ''[[Midnight]]''</ref>


==Atypical uses==
==Atypical uses==
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During the [[Fall of Reach]] in [[2552]], remembering an accident involving an improperly-mounted Slipspace drive, [[Kat-B320]] of [[SPARTAN programs|SPARTAN]] [[Noble Team]] devised a plan to use the {{UNSCShip|Savannah}}'s Slipspace drive as an improvised "bomb" to destroy the [[Covenant supercarrier]] ''[[Long Night of Solace]]'', in lieu of [[nuclear weapon]]ry, which was unavailable at the time. The bomb was transported by a [[Dropship 77-Troop Carrier|Pelican]] into the hangar bay of the [[Covenant corvette]] ''[[Ardent Prayer]]'', which was then hijacked and set on a refueling track with the supercarrier. The activation timer for the "bomb" was damaged in a firefight, so [[Jorge-052]] stayed behind to activate it manually, while [[SPARTAN-B312]] was forced out of the ship. When the Slipspace drive was activated, a massive Slipspace rupture was created, which caused ''Ardent Prayer'', along with a large portion of ''Long Night of Solace'', to be teleported into oblivion. With its entire midsection missing, the remains of ''Long Night of Solace'' crashed onto the surface of the planet [[Reach]].<ref name="reach"/>
During the [[Fall of Reach]] in [[2552]], remembering an accident involving an improperly-mounted Slipspace drive, [[Kat-B320]] of [[SPARTAN programs|SPARTAN]] [[Noble Team]] devised a plan to use the {{UNSCShip|Savannah}}'s Slipspace drive as an improvised "bomb" to destroy the [[Covenant supercarrier]] ''[[Long Night of Solace]]'', in lieu of [[nuclear weapon]]ry, which was unavailable at the time. The bomb was transported by a [[Dropship 77-Troop Carrier|Pelican]] into the hangar bay of the [[Covenant corvette]] ''[[Ardent Prayer]]'', which was then hijacked and set on a refueling track with the supercarrier. The activation timer for the "bomb" was damaged in a firefight, so [[Jorge-052]] stayed behind to activate it manually, while [[SPARTAN-B312]] was forced out of the ship. When the Slipspace drive was activated, a massive Slipspace rupture was created, which caused ''Ardent Prayer'', along with a large portion of ''Long Night of Solace'', to be teleported into oblivion. With its entire midsection missing, the remains of ''Long Night of Solace'' crashed onto the surface of the planet [[Reach]].<ref name="reach"/>
{{Clear}}
{{Clear}}
==Known models==
=== CODEN series===
CODEN is a series of Shaw-Fujikawa Translight Engines employed on UNSC Naval warships. The Series IV was common in {{Class|Charon|light frigate}}.<ref name="bul10">http://blogs.halowaypoint.com/Headlines/post/2012/10/10/The-Halo-Bulletin-101012-.aspx[ '''Waypoint: The Halo Bulletin''': ''10.10.12'']</ref> The Series V was installed on the {{Class|Halcyon|light cruiser}} {{UNSCShip|Pillar of Autumn}} before it was deployed for its [[Operation: RED FLAG|final operation]].<ref>[http://halo.xbox.com/Content/assets/en-us/ONI/577839090903298928/DDR-A340024-1115-08-27-52.pdf '''Halo Waypoint''': ''Data Drop 5'']</ref>
=== Macedon ===
The first in its own class, the {{UNSCShip|Infinity}} is equipped with the Mark X Macedon/Z-PROTOTYPE #78720HDS.<ref name="bul10">[http://blogs.halowaypoint.com/Headlines/post/2012/10/10/The-Halo-Bulletin-101012-.aspx '''Waypoint''': ''The Halo Bulletin: 10.10.12'']</ref> This engine is Forerunner in origin and design.<ref>'''Spartan Ops''', ''[[S1/Catherine|S1E3 ''Catherine'']]</ref>
===Saddle box===
[[Saddle box]]es are rare, specialized slipspace drives built only by the UNSC for use in military experiments with slipstream space. They are commonly built to resemble commercial slipspace drives in order to be inconspicuous.<ref>'''Halo: First Strike (2010)''', ''[[Tug o' War]]''</ref>
==Trivia==
==Trivia==
*The slipspace technology name Shaw-Fujikawa may have been another aspect of [[List of references to Aliens in the Halo series|the inspiration]] Bungie derived from the sci-fi movie ''[[Wikipedia:Alien (franchise)|Aliens]]'' in which a prominent company in that film was a combination of the hyphened western and Asian surnames, [[W:c:Alien:Weyland-Yutani|Weyland-Yutani]].
*The slipspace technology name Shaw-Fujikawa may have been another aspect of [[List of references to Aliens in the Halo series|the inspiration]] Bungie derived from the sci-fi movie ''[[Wikipedia:Alien (franchise)|Aliens]]'' in which a prominent company in that film was a combination of the hyphened western and Asian surnames, [[W:c:Alien:Weyland-Yutani|Weyland-Yutani]].
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==Gallery==
==Gallery==
<gallery>
<gallery>
File:HaloReach - Uppercut Slipspace Drive.jpg|Slipspace drive of the frigate {{UNSCShip|Savannah}}.
File:HW-Reactor-Model.jpg|Untextured and textured 3D models of the ''Spirit of Fire'''s slipspace drive.
File:HW-Reactor-Model.jpg|Untextured and textured 3D models of the ''Spirit of Fire'''s slipspace drive.
File:Spirit_SF_room.png|The Shaw-Fujikawa drive room of the ''Spirit of Fire''.
File:Spirit_SF_room.png|The Shaw-Fujikawa drive room of the ''Spirit of Fire''.
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