Re: superhero space navigation

On Mon, 07 Apr 2008 02:32:00 -0700, Erik Max Francis <max@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
wrote:

>Leonard Erickson wrote:
>
>> Ok, I've been playing with a story idea involving superpowers. (Yeah,
>> I know, not exactly hard sf)
>> 
>> What'm wondering is how someone who can "fly" and survive in outer
>> space would navigate. Assuming no supersenses, of course.
>> 
>> I can see visual nabvigation between the earth and the moon. But
>> beyond that getting lost would seem awfully easy.
>> 
>> And even near earth there are problems. I seem to recall that
>> hand-held GPS units don't work and speeds much above 200 mph.
>> 
>> Are their "portable" (in the sense of "not bigger than a laptop" and
>> "doesn't require huge batteries") GPS units that would work at high
>> mach numbers or in low orbit?
>> 
>> And what will work for interplanetary navigation?
>
>You don't say, but I'm guessing that you're assuming that they can 
>travel awfully fast -- hey, they're superheroes, they'll do that -- and 
>so plotting courses and using orbital mechanics is not the problem, but 
>rather getting their bearings.
>
>Remember, they have supervision, too.  All they have to do is consult an 
>orrery of some kind before they take off, and they'll have no problem 
>getting to where they need to go.

Except this character doesn't have super vision. Everything is
effectively a riff on TK. Though a few things are a reach. 

And I (and likely the chatracter, who is a teen) is going to take a
while to figure out that they can do the tricks suggested here. Not
like they can ask questions.

For that matter, being extra paranoid is probably a survival trait. 

>Seems to me like it would be kind of a no-brainer, with sufficient 
>knowledge of the constellations and where things are supposed to be. 
>Superheroes don't need to operate in prehistoric times, do they?  Either 
>way, they can bring an astronomical ephemeris with them or something.

Well, the suggestions so far look like a printout or two from one of
those programs for pointing your telescoope  may be enough to start
with. Hadn't realized that "visual flight" navigation would actually
be that practical.

Mostly because it hadn't occured to me that the position of a planet
among the constellations would be that useful.

Though now that I think harder, those positions are trather dependent
on where in the solar system you are. So the standard programs
aren'tquite as useful...