REM%MIT-MC@sri-unix.UUCP (04/02/84)
From: Robert Elton Maas <REM @ MIT-MC>
PURE FICTION BASED ON GROSS MISUNDERSTANDING OF PHYSICS:
The rounds had enough velocity to go into orbit around the moon;
after one orbit, the American's barrage had circled the satellite,
and blew holes in the American base. Similarly with the Russians.
Both sides soon realized that their own fire was endangering them more
than the other side's, since the laws of orbital mechanics assured
that a bullet fired with elliptical-orbit velocity would eventually
come back to its launch site,
That's a nonsense "word argument", not a scientific argument. Sure we
all know a projectile in elliptical orbit returns to its launch point
(ignoring rotation of Moon), but unless the projectile is fired
exactly parallel to the ground (or from a high point, somewhat near
horizontal), the launch point isn't at the point nearest the center of
the moon (perilune), so in order to reach launch point the projectile
must pass THROUGH THE MOON during the part near perilune when its
closer to the center of the moon than it was at launch. Since
projectiles are normally fired at 45 degree inclination to achieve
maximum horizontal motion for given thrust, it's extremely unlikely a
significant fraction of projectiles would ever be fired close enough
to horizontally.
It's funny how many arguments sound nice when you quote nice-sounding
well-reputed phrases and string them together into a pretty "argument"
without thinking them through. An awful lot of science fiction is
based on such mis-arguments, an awful lot!!
(Let's see, an explosion generates thrust, so an explosion on the moon
could send it speeding through space together with Moonbase Alpha, and
at relativistic speeds it could travel the universe in a few hundred
years of shiptime, so thus visit lots of exciting places in one TV
season. Practice finding flaws in that SF plot, and in others. There
are at least three MAJOR flaws, can you find them?)