How did Cochrane get back to Earth?

Warspite · Post by **Warspite** » 2004-05-15 08:28am

Gandalf wrote: The Vulcans might be able to get it.

That makes as much sense as saying the Enterprise tractor it back to the surface. (After it had recovered its ejected crew, of course...)

Post by **Gandalf** » 2004-05-15 08:32am

Warspite wrote:
Gandalf wrote:The Vulcans might be able to get it.
That makes as much sense as saying the Enterprise tractor it back to the surface. (After it had recovered its ejected crew, of course...)

How do you mean?

Jon · Post by **Jon** » 2004-05-15 01:45pm

Gandalf wrote:
Warspite wrote:
Gandalf wrote:The Vulcans might be able to get it.
That makes as much sense as saying the Enterprise tractor it back to the surface. (After it had recovered its ejected crew, of course...)
How do you mean?

Yes, they might, but that still isn't the point. Forget the events for a moment- Cochrane 'never knew' that an alien vessel would pop down to see them as soon as they did their warp flight, so he didn't think "Hey, we'll leave it in orbit, those crafty vulcans can get it for us". Why would he leave it in space, not knowing how to get it back- like has been said, he would have no way of proving what he had done, and the chances of being able to retrieve it would probably be minimum- luckily for him, the vulcans probably did retrieve it if he left it in space- but that still begs the question of why he would do it.

Bah!

VT-16 · Post by **VT-16** » 2004-05-16 06:25pm

Hmmm, I´m almost 100 % sure I saw the Phoenix landed in Cochrane´s camp, with the Vulcan vessel parked right next to it. So it must have gotten down somehow. (Can´t be bothered to watch the movie again, it was bought several years ago on DVD, without my permission

)

Btw. thanks for the sig, Warspite.

Crayz9000 · Post by **Crayz9000** » 2004-05-16 06:48pm

He could have had an "inflatable shuttlecock" at the tail end of the Phoenix (like what they're using for Project daVinci), so that the whole thing could re-enter. It reenters, parachutes kick in, the heat shield is dropped, retrorockets fire. The Russians do it all the time (minus the dropping the heat shield part).

StarshipTitanic · Post by **StarshipTitanic** » 2004-05-16 08:18pm

VT-16 wrote:Hmmm, I´m almost 100 % sure I saw the Phoenix landed in Cochrane´s camp, with the Vulcan vessel parked right next to it. So it must have gotten down somehow. (Can´t be bothered to watch the movie again, it was bought several years ago on DVD, without my permission )

Btw. thanks for the sig, Warspite.

You're wrong, I saw it a few weeks ago.

Sarevok · Post by **Sarevok** » 2004-05-17 05:29am

My guess is the Phoenix had a reentry shield and parachute. So it could land like a Soyuz spacecraft.

Patrick Degan · Post by **Patrick Degan** » 2004-05-17 01:47pm

evilcat4000 wrote:My guess is the Phoenix had a reentry shield and parachute. So it could land like a Soyuz spacecraft.

No doubt this was true of the command module. But the warp module isn't configured in any way, shape, or form for anything approaching a controlled reentry and that's the problem.

Warspite · Post by **Warspite** » 2004-05-17 02:20pm

Patrick Degan wrote:
evilcat4000 wrote:My guess is the Phoenix had a reentry shield and parachute. So it could land like a Soyuz spacecraft.
No doubt this was true of the command module. But the warp module isn't configured in any way, shape, or form for anything approaching a controlled reentry and that's the problem.

Quite, leaving the most important part of the prototype stranded in space, where it achieves nothing as proof of achieving Warp flight... Is there any evidence for other space flights during that time? Space stations?

Isolder74 · Post by **Isolder74** » 2004-05-17 02:30pm

well they would still have the data logs, ect. But it would have been better to have the whole thing for them to touch/see

Sarevok · Post by **Sarevok** » 2004-05-18 12:40am

Patrick Degan wrote:
evilcat4000 wrote:My guess is the Phoenix had a reentry shield and parachute. So it could land like a Soyuz spacecraft.
No doubt this was true of the command module. But the warp module isn't configured in any way, shape, or form for anything approaching a controlled reentry and that's the problem.

The warp engines were inside the craft when the Phoenix was launched. After exiting the atmosphere the warp engines were extended. Perhaps they could also retract the warp engines back inside before reentering the atmosphere.

Patrick Degan · Post by **Patrick Degan** » 2004-05-18 12:48am

evilcat4000 wrote:
Patrick Degan wrote:
evilcat4000 wrote:My guess is the Phoenix had a reentry shield and parachute. So it could land like a Soyuz spacecraft.
No doubt this was true of the command module. But the warp module isn't configured in any way, shape, or form for anything approaching a controlled reentry and that's the problem.
The warp engines were inside the craft when the Phoenix was launched. After exiting the atmosphere the warp engines were extended. Perhaps they could also retract the warp engines back inside before reentering the atmosphere.

That wouldn't matter in the slightest. The warp module is still a long cyllinder. Something like that will not have the aerodynamic characteristics to make a controlled reentry. Instead, it would tumble and be ripped apart by shearing stress even while it was burning up from friction.