The actor who played the voice of Admiral Ackbar died today – he who voiced the famous “IT’S A TRAP!” line in Star Wars: Return of the Jedi. That got me thinking a bit about the fact that the Mon Calamari Cruisers shown in Star Wars were not filled with water, despite the Mon Calamari species being Amphibians who, according to Wookiepedia, have no problem staying underwater indefinitely.
Why isn’t this ship filled with seawater?
Why was I wondering about the lack of water-filled ships in Star Wars? Because it occurred to me that a starship filled with water rather than air would be a pretty big advantage in a space battle where the crew would be subjected to extreme acceleration forces and a high potential of the hull being breached by weapons or debris. it seemed to me that an amphibious crew in a water-filled compartment would be able to withstand enormous acceleration forces that would send us air-breathing meat bags crashing into walls as our bodies fly through thin air.
This line of thought then caused me to ponder the other advantages that an amphibious space-faring race would enjoy, for instance, they can fill thier *entire ship* full of reaction fuel instead of having fuel tanks ancillary to the ship, giving them the ability to go much longer distances between fuel stops (perhaps mining a passing comet for more water). Longer range, better acclimation to acceleration, greater protection against the inevitable micrometeor impact on the hull, it all adds up to big advantages for a spacefaring amphibious race.
Which leads me to the conclusion that if Earth is ever visited by a spacefaring race looking to explore water-rich Class M planets, the representatives of that race might just offer the “flipper of friendship” to shake our hands. I’m making book at 7 to 3 odds on it, and I can only hope that the first words out of our mouth aren’t “IT’S A TRAP!”
RIP: Erik Bauersfeld @ 93, Voice of Admiral Ackbar
Sad news about Erik Bauersfeld. Admiral Ackbar’s famous quote gets a lot of play in my house, eg: family sits down to dinner and – “IT’S A TRAP!” We were all thrilled to see Admiral Ackbar back in Episode VII.
Interesting thoughts on possible Mon Calamari advantages in space travel.
Your post brings other famous/infamous Star Wars quotes to mind: the creepy/awkward Anakin/Padme dialogue from Episode III – that gets replayed frequently in my home to general hilarity.
Ahh, Episode III – at least it serves as an object lesson to young girls about how passionate teenage boyfriends can so quickly turn into completely self-centered turds who will hurt them badly. /:
Episode III is also an object lesson on the hazards of giving George Lucas carte blanche as a writer and director.
I think the first word out of our mouth is likely to be “SEAFOOD!”
Hi,
This is Meleana and I am a (probable spammer).
The link you provide is 404, so I can’t see what your complaint is. Can you be specific about what you’re talking about? Thanks.
No doubt you immediately came to the same opinion, but I’m calling BS on “Meleana.” This reads like a spam attempt to get readers to click on a download link — one that was soon shut down by Google when they detected that it was used to distribute malware. A real “certified photographer and illustrator” (what does that mean?) would contact you privately and link directly to the infringed images.
yeah, that seems legit (: