Post WW-2 IR Sensors for your Starship. Get 'em now!

[sideranautae]

Using TL 7 equipment as a minimum for the sensor package I figured out the range at which a typical Merchant ship could detect a 20Kt ship (spherical config.)

Postulating a low heat of 310 kelvin gives a detection range of CORRECTION ~411,246km. It would take a few hours to scan in every direction.

The sensor tables in the CRB only go up to 50,000+ km. A few orders of magnitude lower than what's needed for even TL 7 (much less Early Stellar TL's). So, we'll call those tables TL 5 sensor tables.

 

[sideranautae]

A merchant using the Basic IR Sensors could detect a Tigress Class BB at a range of at least 1,225,430 km. That would be if the Tigress was observing TOTAL EM blackout for stealth purposes.

 

[sideranautae]

I used a single ~3cm lens for the Basic Ship IR detector lens.

A basic Military IR sensor would probably be on the order of 2 x 30cm lenses (for parallax usage).

Given that the IR gathering ability of lens (objective)
= π × (diameter of objective)2/4.

That would give Basic Mil IR sensors 200x the power of the Basic Civilian sensors.

That 20kt ship would be detected at a range of 82,249,200km
The Tigress at 245,086,000km (over 13 light minutes away)

 

[Matt Wilson]

"Oh no, an enemy destroyer. Crap, we only have nine hours to plot a course and jump away."

 

[sideranautae]

"Oh no, an enemy destroyer. Crap, we only have nine hours to plot a course and jump away."

Yep. The chances of sneaking up on even a cheap civilian ship are so close to 0% that it might as well be nil.

 

[Rick]

Of course, unless you have got sensors capable of looking in every direction at once, rather than scanning a sector and moving on; how long would you have to keep them trained on one area to make sure you didn't miss a damn big ship several light-minutes away?

 

[sideranautae]

Of course, unless you have got sensors capable of looking in every direction at once, rather than scanning a sector and moving on; how long would you have to keep them trained on one area to make sure you didn't miss a damn big ship several light-minutes away?

It takes about 2 hours to scan the entire 3D sphere (for the basic sensors). Do you know how long it takes a Trav ship to accelerate across a distance of light minutes???

I think you haven't really looked at the distances involved here Trav M-drive capability

 

[Rick]

Of course, unless you have got sensors capable of looking in every direction at once, rather than scanning a sector and moving on; how long would you have to keep them trained on one area to make sure you didn't miss a damn big ship several light-minutes away?

It takes about 2 hours to scan the entire 3D sphere (for the basic sensors). Do you know how long it takes a Trav ship to accelerate across a distance of light minutes???

I think you haven't really looked at the distances involved here Trav M-drive capability

You miss the point - I was assuming you wanted to 'see' other ships without them 'seeing' you, not necessarily just avoiding bumping noses!

 

[sideranautae]

You miss the point - I was assuming you wanted to 'see' other ships without them 'seeing' you, not necessarily just avoiding bumping noses!

No. I am pointing out that someone (like a pirate or mil ship) isn't going to sneak up on another ship. In other words. There is no stealth in space.

 

[Reynard]

In the Traveller Universe there is stealth in space and sensors aren't super accurate in all directions simultaneously out to interplanetary ranges. Warships and pirates can get to striking ranges and there can be fun space battles using weapons impossible in our own VERY dull real world followed by fun boarding actions or planet side encounters using weapons and equipment reality abhors.

Seriously, never ever create a scifi game of any sort based on the real world. It would have few rules, little to do that wasn't accurate or realistic (as we know it right at this moment) and no fun at all! No one will play a Science Fact RPG unless it has the title Historic Simulation and that's a whole other game mentality.

 

[sideranautae]

In the Traveller Universe there is stealth in space and sensors aren't super accurate in all directions simultaneously out to interplanetary ranges.

Hence the topic of this post. Although, if one is going by the RAW in the CRB:

"Surprise: Stealth is virtually impossible in space – a spacecraft shows up as a hot spot against the cold, so unless it is hiding behind an asteroid or other object, it is easy to detect. The only way to attack from surprise is to appear as a harmless ship until you open fire, or to jump in and attack without warning."

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[Reynard]

"Stealth (TL 11): A stealth coating absorbs radar and lidar beams and also disguises heat emissions...."

And sensors still are limited by range.

I raise and call your RAW.

 

[sideranautae]

"Stealth (TL 11): A stealth coating absorbs radar and lidar beams and also disguises heat emissions...."

And sensors still are limited by range.

I raise and call your RAW.

Exactly! WTF?

I just wish for internal consistency in the rules. That's what I want for x-mas. I already have my two front teeth. :mrgreen:


If a new rule is created that requires destroying/violating a HUGE area of physics, then they need at least a couple lines of explanation. That's the difference between Sci-Fi and Fantasy genres...