Is the Technology in 'Alien: Covenant' Realistic? Comparing Fiction to Reality

The movie 'Alien: Covenant' is filled with advanced and otherworldly technology that tantalizes our imagination. However, is this technology truly realistic, or is it purely the stuff of fiction? This article delves into the scientific possibilities of the film's tech, exploring what is plausible and what remains firmly in the realm of science fiction.

Faster-Than-Light Travel: A Journey into the Improbable

The most unrealistic aspect of 'Alien: Covenant' is the faster-than-light (FTL) travel technology used by the ship. While movies often portray this as a seamless and instantaneous mode of transportation, the reality is far more complex. Currently, no known means of travel can surpass the speed of light, as it is the cosmic speed limit established by Einstein's theory of relativity.

One of the major challenges in FTL travel is overcoming the concept of time dilation. According to relativity, as an object nears the speed of light, time slows down for that object relative to an observer. This means that the crew of the ship would experience a much slower passage of time compared to Earth, leading to significant issues in coordinating activities across time zones and maintaining essential functions such as crew training and maintenance schedules.

Artificial Gravity: A Spellbinding Yet Unattainable Dream

The movie showcases artificial gravity aboard the ship, which is a concept that long captivates the minds of scientists and engineers. However, generating artificial gravity through simple rotational motion (like the ship's spinning section) is far from a straightforward solution. The film provides a neat and clean visualization of a spinning ship creating a rotating environment where gravity-like forces are experienced.

From a scientific standpoint, producing artificial gravity involves significant technical challenges. One approach could be to use centrifugal force generated by rotating a space habitat. However, this approach has its limitations. As the rotation increases, ensuring the structural integrity of the ship becomes increasingly complex. Moreover, the induced gravitational force is not uniform: it is stronger towards the outer edge of the rotating section, leading to potential health and safety issues for the crew. A more viable but still challenging alternative is to use magnetic fields and charged particles to create gravity-like forces, but current research in this field is still in its infancy.

Current Milestones and Future Prospects

While the technology in 'Alien: Covenant' may border on the impossible, significant advancements in space travel and artificial gravity are making some of these concepts seem less far-fetched.

Breakthroughs in Propulsion Technology

Developments in propulsion technology are paving the way for more efficient and possibly faster spacecraft. While actual FTL travel remains outside the realm of current physics, concepts like the Alcubierre drive (which warps the space-time fabric itself rather than moving the ship) are explored in theoretical physics. Although these ideas are not yet testable, they represent an active area of research that could one day bring us closer to the dreams depicted in movies like 'Alien: Covenant'.

Advancements in Space Habitats

The concept of artificial gravity has been the focus of space mission planning for decades. NASA and other space agencies are exploring ways to create sustainable living environments in space. The International Space Station (ISS) and similar experimental habitats like the Mars One project are testing the long-term health effects of microgravity and methods for generating artificial gravity.

Challenges Ahead

Despite these advancements, numerous challenges remain. For instance, the long-term effects of microgravity on the human body are still not fully understood, and creating a true artificial gravity environment on Mars or other planets is far from a trivial task. Additionally, the energy requirements for FTL travel are immense and cannot be met with current technology.

Conclusion

While the technology depicted in 'Alien: Covenant' may seem purely fictional, it has inspired significant scientific progress and continues to push the boundaries of what is possible. As we continue to explore and understand the cosmos, the realistic and the fantastical are often more intertwined than we realize. The journey from current reality to the depictions in the movie may take centuries, but every step forward in technology brings us one step closer to making these dreams a reality.