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H.M.S. Tempest |
Tempest was built in 1888, second of the Typhoon class of ęther cruisers designed to provide a smaller, faster, more flexible ęther warship than the huge Duke of York class ęther battleship. Tempest is 308 feet long, 145 feet wide and measures 2800 tons. For travel between planets, Tempest's improved Armstrong Ęther Propeller can drive her at a maximum velocity of 3.35 million miles per day. Electricity to power the Ęther Propeller comes from dynamos driven by two triple-expansion steam engines. Since her coal-fired boilers can't be used in space, steam is provided by a parabolic mirror (collapsible for travel in atmosphere) that concetrates solar energy into a boiler. When in a planetary atmosphere, her steam engines deliver 3000 horsepower to four wood air screws. Her large rudder fins provide directional control while in atmosphere and double as radiators to dispose of waste heat while in space. Louver slats of Meepsorian liftwood in the hull, controlled by a complicated arrangement of trim levers, can lift the ship from the surface of a planet to beyond the atmosphere, where her ęther propeller becomes effective. The Typhoons are third class protected cruisers, which means they are lightly armored with the armor concentrated around the vital sections of the ship. Their main armament consists of six six-inch guns, especially designed to work in the airlessness of space, mounted in two dual ventral turrets and two single dorsal turrets. She can also mount a number of smaller guns on fixed pintels on her deck when she is in atmosphere. The normal complement is 158 men.
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Specifications: Typhoon class ęther cruiser: built in the Elswick Shipyard, England, designed by Sir Philip Watts
Ęther drive: Armstrong Mk IV ęther propeller, providing a maximum velocity of 3.35 million miles per day
Engines: two triple-expansion steam engines, with 1500 horsepower each
Length: 260 feet 3 inches, overall length (including the ęther propeller) is 308 feet
Beam: 85 feet 3 inches, overall width (including atmospheric propeller nacelles) is 145 feet
Height: 88 feet (not counting the mast)
Weight: 2800 tons
Airspeed: 35 knots
Ceiling: n/a
Endurance: 120 days
Armament: 6 six-inch naval guns, 10 one-pound Hotchkiss rotating cannon, 12 Nordenfelt machineguns
Crew: 158 (13 officers, 127 enlisted, 18 marines).
Space:1889 is Frank Chadwick's registered trademark for his game of Victorian Era space-faring. He has granted permission for the use of the background of Space:1889 for the stories presented here. All text, illustrations, photographs and design are © 2000-2007 Dan Thompson, except where otherwise noted.
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