Star Wars Technology

[Robbie]

This is the technology of Star Wars.

[Robbie]

Ion Drive

The Ion drive was a type of engine technology used to propel most starships at sublight velocities. Ion engines were fueled by power cells, liquid chemical reactants, onboard generators, or virtually any other device capable of providing sufficient power. The engine utilized internal fusion reactions to produce a stream of highly-charged particles that were forced through the engine's exhaust port at nearly the speed of light. Ion engines were sometimes called ion rockets.

Ion engines were known to emit mildly radioactive byproducts, requiring onboard technicians to wear protective gear. Because of this radioactivity, it was common protocol for most ships to utilize repulsorlifts for propulsion during atmospheric flight and reserve use of the more powerful ion drives for orbital navigation.

The most noted craft using ion drives were TIE Fighters, who received their name in accordance with the number of ion engines they used: Twin Ion Engine.

Repulsor Lift

The repulsorlift or repulsorlift engine, often referred to simply as a repulsor, was an anti-gravity technology capable of levitating an object. It was created from subnuclear "knots" of space-time made by enormous unmanned power refineries encompassing black holes.[1] Repulsorlifts were widely used, and were included on virtually every type of vehicle.

Overview

Repulsorlifts only worked within a gravity well, as the technology required mass to push against. For a typical habitable planet such as Alderaan, "antigrav range" was approximately six planetary diameters, or around seventy-five thousand kilometers. Repulsorlifts used minimal power and were reliable enough to be utilized continuously.

Repulsorlifts could be assembled in arrays, clusters, or vanes studded with micro-coils of gravitic knots.[1] These units were then mounted on a vehicle or spacecraft, usually on the underside. The many repulsorlifts needed for a large ship were typically powered by a dedicated "antigrav generator."

Ships as massive as the Clone Wars era Venator-class Star Destroyers and Lucrehulk-class Core Ships were only able to make planetfall with the aid of massive ventral repulsorlift suspensor units. In fact, the landing legs of a Core Ship could not support the ship's immense weight without the aid of repulsorlifts.

The five planets of the Corellian system possessed massive repulsors on their surface. They were so powerful that they could destroy capital ships in nearby space, and even stop the devastating firepower of Centerpoint Station, which created gravitational shifts great enough to destroy stars.

The Verpine of the Roche asteroids utilized repulsorlifts in asteroid shepherding. Vehicles that commonly employed repulsors include speeder bikes, swoops, landspeeders, airspeeders and starships capable of operating in a planetary atmosphere. Power chairs, repulsorsleds and skimboards also used this technology.

Jaina Solo and Lowbacca along with scientists discovered that a miniature repulsor could mimic the gravitic signature of a Yuuzhan Vong ship they captured, the Trickster, enabling the New Republic to trick the Vong into attacking their own ships, creating decoys, and confusing them in battle. This would turn the tide of the Yuuzhan Vong War.