(urth) The Ship

[Gerry Quinn]

From: Lee Berman 

> > Gerry Quinn: I would say the opposite: stopping the Moon in its orbit would be a 
> > cataclysmic event.  And while the Ship is large, it is indicated to be about the 
> > size of an island ruled by a minor lord, which seems much smaller than the Moon.

> Hm..who would be a major lord, in this case?
> Anyway, I'm curious where you get the comparison in size to "island". I'm curious
> because in Severian's first view of Tzadkiel he is island-sized. The Ship is 
> described, once or twice, as being like a living thing. I've sometimes wondered if
> the Ship itself is a version of Tzadkiel. That would be some mighty, mighty shape-
> shifting.
“he ship was larger than many an isle that boasts a hall and an armiger in it who thinks himself almost a monarch”



> Anyway, if the ship was much smaller than the moon it would have to be a lot closer
> than the moon to Urth to cause an eclipse. I think gravity would become an issue, 
> especially since the Ship would have to remain parked, stationary over one particular
> spot on Urth for hours (a normal total solar eclipse only lasts a few minutes). I
> don't see mirror sails being a very effective way of accomplishing this and no other
> means of propulsion is mentioned.

> You could say, "well, maybe they have backup impulse power.." or whatever. But it is 
> similar to the issue of inhumi flying through space. You have to pile on speculation
> atop of speculation to make it work, when a much simpler answer is available.

 
If the Ship sometimes comes in close to a star, as we are told, it must have some auxiliary power source.  By contrast, think about the power needed to stop and restart the Moon in its orbit.


> (I disagree that a stationary moon over the course of a few hours would cause cataclysms.
> Why would it? I think it would just maintain high tides for a while. Maybe change wind
> patterns. Far less cataclysmic than adding a second moon. And I still think Apu PUnchau
> works better as a real sun god, rather than a fake, Twainsy one.      
The Moon travels in its orbit at a speed of half a kilometre per second.  What do you think happens when you crash-stop a body of 3500 km diameter moving at that speed?
- Gerry Quinn
 
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