Sanacion (sa·na·ción)

Some look at Space and see tranquil skies; others see the fighter plane battle of Star Wars or battles from Mars or Neptune or where ever the marauding alien forces might be. The numerous movies watched at 3 am that detail a time with laser guns and guns that shoot green rays and orange rays; no doubt signifying how far we have come.

Space is an interesting battlefield. There are more directions that are open to attack. Or are there? Physics adds or rather takes away a lot of the directions and dimensions one has to consider. Any battle is going to have much more to consider than just popping in, shooting a death ray and popping out. First there is the orbit they are in and how it behaves. Go up one level, the orbits of the planets. Much as we have been dependant on the launch windows for the Space Shuttle, those same problems find one when out in space.

So first how do we even the battlefield? Well, there are all sorts of engines and technologies we don’t have as yet, but some are within our grasp. But in the meantime and and maybe even later, I think the Gyroscope is the most important thing. To be able to aim weapon X at any angle certainly provides an important advantage.

Ok so, Weapon X; what is it?

Well, what can cause the greatest damage?

A Laser? – first of all you have a low-gravity to no-gravity environment, you have a near-vacuum, so remember that whatever you calculate on Earth, recalculate! Still, it should work out, its trajectory might be affected by space dust, slowed in Nebulae, or effected by gravity, but if you’re firing close, no big deal. But what is the desired effect? You’re not really going to get the burst of energetic particles or slicing of the enemy cruiser unless you have a big enough energy supply.
Want to hear something funny? Think about the Physics of space. Think about what would be scarier, more life threatening…In space, space is the fear, so – projectiles, simple yet think of the damage. Their weight alone can make them shoot out and just keep going in space, but if they hit something one of two things will happen – most likely both! It will rip the skeleton to pieces and it will push it in that vacuum to whenever. Low tech is actually our best bet. Besides which, learning exactly what will happen with trajectory and Physics before we achieve a ray gun or some such thing might be desired.

In Sanacion: The Black Hole Mission there are lasers and there are projectiles. Hmmmm. What could they be shooting at?