Edwin L. Pangman, Project Engineer

The Enzmann Echolance Ship is fission/fusion-powered, but in this case, the propulsion system, instead of being a magnetic bottle as in the Torch, is a half-mile long set of particle accelerators capable of relativistic particle-beam exhaust.

Also, being about a half-mile long and carrying the hydrogen snow in its fuel storage cone, this ship has a much higher velocity capability. Magnetic and laser shielding are employed for the ship’s protection at these higher velocities. It is a generational ship with inflight repair and refueling capability. The attainable percentage of light speed achievable by these ships is estimated to be 70% or more.

The modular spheres of the ship are 300 feet in diameter. There will be housing for habitat, apartments, machine shops, shipboard farming, glove-docks (as with the Torch ships), and different types of landing craft. A Lance can carry up to 8,000 people. Lance ships travel in convoy and are capable of docking, repairing, and aiding each other, or even creating a new ship. They are equipped with triple redundancy – the capability of reproducing itself three times.

The Echolance is a unique ship and a unique propulsion system. It is today and was decades ago, a viable star travel vehicle. The Lance is not a colonizing ship as is the Torch, it is an exploration and escort ship with no civilian population except families of the crew.