Rules Only: Nebulosity and Dust Clouds

[DanDare]

In Traveller there is no discussion of the impact of Nebulosity and Dust Clouds on star ship sub light movement or navigation or on effects on star systems within such clouds. Are the clouds of economic value? Such clouds are large enough to blanket multiple sectors so its a shame they aren't covered.

Has anyone considered this interesting astronomical feature and thought out its impact in game terms?

 

[flg]

I doubt that Nebulae would have any significant effect on anything. You wouldn't even see them up close (we only see them from afar because we have telescopes collecting all their light from a small point in the sky. Spread that same light out over a large area of the sky when you're nearby, and it becomes a lot dimmer).

And a nebula still has far less gas in it than the best man-made vacuum (hundreds of molecules per cubic cm in a nebula versus 10,000+ molecules per cubic cm in a man-made vacuum).

 

[aramis]

The densest gas planetary nebulae are presumed to be about 100 to 10,000 particles per cc. (Osterbrook & Ferland, 2005). Larger particles may be multi-molecular, up to several microns across. (http://www-ssg.sr.unh.edu/ism/what1.html)

The Interstellar medium runs 1 atom per cc... (http://www-ssg.sr.unh.edu/ism/what1.html)... some 100 to 10,000 times the density.

The Interplanetary medium is around 5 particles per CC in orbit 3 of a G2V... inverse square applies. But note also solar wind runs 10 particles per cc ±10%, so the lower density is practically only in shadows behind planets and solar weather events. CME's run 1000 to 100,000 particles per CC, again inverse square applies, and typically it's around 1000 particles per cc at earth, but can easily top 5x that for the biggest ones, IIRC.

Surface air on earth runs 3e19 particles per cc...

A CME is supposedly naked-eye visible for the first couple hours... if one can block out the glare from the sun.

The temperature is FAR more important than the density for visibility. Looking at the blackbody graph, get that stuff up to about 1500° K, and you've got visibility.

Likewise, a lot of the visibility is reflective - you might actually see the nebula as a slightly dark blue shell (for dust)... rather than the black we see.

Visible, but not highly visible...

 

[Macus74Bishop]

I have incorporated sectors-wide nebulae into my campaigns and with them I have included stellar nurseries. Imagine a newly-minted solar system where the planets are just beginning to cool and impacts from meteors and asteroids are not that uncommon. Granted most worlds would be barren and devoid of life, but it could make an interesting place for corsairs to retreat to. Think about Star Trek's Badlands with the Maquis milling about. I usually label these areas Amber Zone limited mostly to IISS activity.