REAL LIFE IMITATES STAR TREK: TRACTOR BEAMS
by Hazed
Tractor beams have been a feature of space stories since the dawn of science fiction: beams of force that can grab hold of other ships and drag them towards the source. Perfect for space warfare or for cargo-wrangling.
Now some new research has demonstrated just how they might work, and it turns out that Star Trek’s depiction of tractor beams was closer to reality than they would have thought.
Usually if a beam or light or sound hits an object, it pushes it away. More like a repellor beam. To make a tractor beam work, the beams are instead oriented so they hit the sides of the object. This causes the force to operate in the other direction which pulls the object in instead of pushing it away.
How does this relate to Star Trek? Well, they depicted multiple beams shooting out then converging on the target from different angles, which isn’t all that far from the new theory.
So score one for the science fiction writers!
Source: http://space.io9.com/for-real-life-tractor-beams-the-angle-matters-1546477120/@AnnaleeNewitz
