That also gives a new spin to the phrase "My God, it's full of stars!",
doesn't it, Dave?
;-) Sorry, I couldn't resist.
I wonder if the SSC hardware could be reconfigured as a massive energy
storage device, for possible SDI applications? It sure seems a shame to
abort such an expensive project just as it was nearing completion...
Everything I've read about directed energy weapons including particle beams &
plasma guns indicates that large pulses of energy are used to drive these
things. Supposedly, a plasma torus can store a very large amount of energy,
be focused to pinhead size, and be magnetically accelerated to supersonic
velocity.
Doug