Sci Fi Science: Physics of the Impossible (2009–…): Season 2, Episode 7 - Destroy the Death Star - full transcript

I'M PICKING ON THE BIGGEST,
DEADLIEST WAR MACHINE

IN SCI-FI HISTORY.

Dr. Kaku: ALONG THE WAY, I WILL
TEST SPACE-AGE WEAPONRY...

WOW! LOOK AT THAT.

...HOOK UP WITH SCI-FI FANS...

IN 150 YEARS, I THINK
IT'S PROBABLY POSSIBLE

TO BUILD A STARFIGHTER LIKE THIS.

...AND TALK TACTICS WITH THE TOP BRASS.

IT CAN LITERALLY DESTROY
THINGS UP TO TERRESTRIAL SIZE.

I'M GONNA BUILD A STARFIGHTER
THAN CAN BLOW UP THE DEATH STAR.

I'M DR. MICHIO KAKU.



I'M A THEORETICAL PHYSICIST

AND A SCIENCE-FICTION [Echoing] FAN.

JOIN ME AS I SHOW YOU HOW
TO MAKE SCI-FI [Echoing] SCIENCE.

THE DEATH STAR IS THE MOST MONSTROUS WEAPON

TO APPEAR IN SCIENCE FICTION.

IT HAS THE FIREPOWER

TO INCINERATE AND DESTROY ENTIRE PLANETS.

BUT, AS EVERY SCI-FI FAN
KNOWS, IT HAS AN ACHILLES HEEL.

IN "STAR WARS," LUKE SKYWALKER TOOK IT OUT

WITH JUST AN X-WING FIGHTER.

IT'S ONE OF THE MOST
EXCITING MOMENTS IN SCI-FI.

EVERYONE SAID IT WAS AN
IMPOSSIBLE JOB EXCEPT FOR LUKE.

LUKE DID IT.

THE FORCE IS STRONG WITH THIS ONE.



IT'S NO GOOD. I CAN'T MANEUVER.

STAY ON TARGET. WE'RE TOO CLOSE!

[ IMITATES SPACESHIP ] LOOSEN UP!

I HAVE YOU NOW. STAY ON TARGET.

AAH! AAH!

I LOVE "STAR WARS,"

BUT COULD A SMALL CRAFT
NO BIGGER THAN A FIGHTER JET

REALLY DESTROY A MOON-SIZED BATTLESTAR?

I'M GONNA FIND OUT.

I WANT TO USE THE MOST ADVANCED SCIENCE

TO DESIGN A STARFIGHTER
TO TAKE ON THE DEATH STAR.

FIRST, I WANT TO USE HUMAN PILOTS

BECAUSE ROBOTS CAN BE TURNED AGAINST YOU,

AND HUMANS STILL HAVE MORE
ADAPTABILITY AND FLEXIBILITY.

SECOND, I NEED SPEED AND MANEUVERABILITY

TO EVADE THE DEFENSES OF THE DEATH STAR.

AND LASTLY, I NEED RAW
FIREPOWER TO GO IN FOR THE KILL

AND BLOW UP THIS MONSTROUS BATTLE STATION.

MY STARFIGHTER DESIGN WILL
DEPEND ON THE TACTICS I NEED

TO OUTWIT THE DEATH STAR'S DEFENSES.

IT WON'T BE EASY, BUT
I'VE HAD A LUCKY BREAK.

THE PENTAGON HAS AGREED

TO LET ME TALK TO ONE
OF THEIR TOP STRATEGISTS.

COLONEL ROD ZASTROW IS AN EX-TOP GUN PILOT

WHO FLEW F-15s DURING THE GULF WAR.

IF WE EVER SEE A DEATH STAR
LOOMING AT US FROM OUTER SPACE,

HE'S THE MAN WHO WILL MEET THE CHALLENGE.

COLONEL, IT'S A GREAT PLEASURE TO MEET YOU.

PLEASURE TO MEET YOU.

WELL, DEATH STAR IS
GONNA BE HIGHLY DEFENDED,

AND SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO USE

NOT ONLY A COMBINATION OF
SPEED AS WELL AS MANEUVERABILITY,

BUT I THINK WE SHOULD EXPLORE
THE CONCEPT OF SWARMING.

IF A SINGLE X-WING

CAN MAKE IT THROUGH TO THE
SURFACE OF THE DEATH STAR,

THEN IT MAY BE ABLE TO
DELIVER THAT KILLER BLOW.

BUT THE COLONEL THINKS IT'S HIGHLY UNLIKELY

A LONE STARFIGHTER COULD
OUTWIT THOSE DEFENSES ON ITS OWN.

HE THINKS I'M GONNA NEED A WHOLE SWARM.

BY WAY OF A SIMPLE ANALOGY,

IF ONE WERE TO BE, SAY,
IN A GAME OF BASEBALL,

LET'S SAY YOU HAVE A BATTER DOWN HERE.

YOU WOULD HAVE ONE PITCH
COMING FROM THE CENTER.

THE BATTER HAS JUST GOT
ONE PITCH TO DEAL WITH.

LIKE A SINGLE STARFIGHTER
AGAINST THE DEATH STAR.

ABSOLUTELY.

LET'S TRIPLE THE DIFFICULTY.

AND IF WE NOW HAVE THREE PITCHERS

THROWING BALLS AT THE BATTER THERE,

HE'S NOT JUST HAVING ONE VERY HIGH-SPEED,

100-MILE-PER-HOUR BASEBALL TO SWING AT.

HE HAS TO MAKE UP HIS MIND.
"WHICH ONE DO I SWING AT FIRST?"

WHAT IF THOSE BASEBALLS COULD MANEUVER?

THEY MIGHT BE ABLE TO MANEUVER
TO DECEIVE HIM TO LOOK AWAY.

THEY MIGHT BE ABLE TO SLOW DOWN

AND MANEUVER AND WORK TOGETHER.

OR COME BACK FROM BEHIND. ABSOLUTELY.

AND IF YOU START ADDING MORE
AND MORE, YOU CAN IMAGINE,

FROM THE BATTER'S PERSPECTIVE,
IT JUST OVERWHELMS HIM,

AND THAT'S THE KEY TO JUST
GETTING ONE GUY TO LEAK THROUGH,

AND THAT'S THE END OF THAT DEATH STAR.

THE TACTIC OF SWARMING
IS SIMPLE AND EFFECTIVE.

IN FACT, IT'S JUST LIKE
WHAT THEY DID IN THE MOVIE.

YOU KNOW, SPEAKING TO COLONEL ZASTROW,

I BEGAN TO APPRECIATE THE FACT

THAT "STAR WARS" IS NOT THE
USUAL SCIENCE-FICTION MOVIE

BASED ON TECHNOBABBLE
AND SCIENCE-FICTION GIBBERISH.

THERE'S SOME REAL,
SOUND MILITARY PRINCIPLES,

INCORPORATING REAL STRATEGY AND TACTICS.

FOR SWARMING TO WORK,

MY STARFIGHTERS NEED
TWO ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS.

THEY MUST BE EXTREMELY AGILE

AND SO FAST, THEY ALLOW THE
DEATH STAR NO TIME TO REACT.

WHAT I'M GONNA TACKLE FIRST IS SPEED.

THIS IS THE FASTEST
MANNED ROCKET EVER BUILT.

APOLLO 10 CLOCKED AT SPEEDS
OF 25,000 MILES PER HOUR.

BUT THIS TOOK MORE THAN
2,500 TONS OF ROCKET FUEL.

THAT'S WAY TOO MUCH FOR
MY STARFIGHTER TO CARRY.

IN THE FUTURE,

I THINK SPACECRAFT WILL
BE FUELED BY ANTIMATTER.

WHEN ANTIMATTER COLLIDES WITH MATTER,

THERE'S AN EXPLOSION

THAT CONVERTS THE MATTER INTO PURE ENERGY.

IT'S 100% EFFICIENT.

SO, INSTEAD OF TONS OF
FUEL, I ONLY NEED OUNCES.

THIS TAXI IS GOING AT
ABOUT 20 MILES PER HOUR,

BUT IMAGINE THAT WE COULD SOMEHOW REPLACE

THE GASOLINE IN THE TANK
WITH ANTIMATTER FUEL.

THEN THIS TAXI WOULD
BE CAPABLE OF ROCKETING

AT 2 MILLION MILES PER HOUR.

IT'S THE PERFECT FUEL FOR MY STARFIGHTER.

NOW WE SOLVED THE PROBLEM OF
HOW TO REACH FANTASTIC VELOCITIES,

MILLIONS OF MILES PER HOUR,
WITH OUR ANTIMATTER ENGINES,

BUT WE STILL HAVE ONE
SMALL DETAIL TO SOLVE...

HOW DO I MAKE A TURN?

AH, THERE'S OUR ASTRONAUT.

COMING UP...

I EXPERIMENT WITH AN ULTRACENTRIFUGE.

WOW! [ LAUGHS ] LOOK AT THAT!

AND I'M BLOWN AWAY BY THE LATEST WEAPON.

WITH ANTIMATTER ENGINES,

WE'VE LICKED THE PROBLEM OF SPEED,

BUT THAT'S NOT ENOUGH.

IF THE ENEMY LOCKS ON TO
YOU, YOU'RE A SITTING DUCK,

SO THE NEXT PROBLEM IS MANEUVERABILITY.

IN SCI-FI MOVIES,

STARFIGHTERS BANK LEFT AND RIGHT

JUST LIKE OUR JET FIGHTERS HERE ON EARTH,

BUT THE MOVIES HAVE GOT IT WRONG.

THERE'S NO AIR PRESSURE IN SPACE,

SO BANKING TO TURN WON'T WORK.

THIS GUY KNOWS EXACTLY HOW DIFFICULT

IT IS TO TURN IN SPACE.

NASA SHUTTLE PILOT KEN REIGHTLER

SAYS IT'S LIKE TRYING TO
DRIVE MODEL HOVERCRAFT.

GOOD LUCK. OKAY. SAME TO YOU.

LET'S GO TRY. OKAY.

SPACESHIPS AND HOVERCRAFT BOTH HAVE TO TURN

WITHOUT THE HELP OF FRICTION,

AND THAT MAKES NAVIGATING
THIS SIMPLE COURSE DIFFICULT.

WHENEVER YOU MAKE A TURN,

YOU ASSUME THAT THINGS ARE GONNA SLOW DOWN

AND THAT YOU CAN FINE-TUNE THE MOTION.

WRONG!

WHEN YOU MAKE A TURN, IT JUST
KEEPS ON GOING AND SPINNING.

AND YOU TURN THE OTHER WAY,
AND IT KEEPS ON GOING AND SPINNING,

SO YOU HAVE THIS CONSTANT ZIGZAG MOTION.

WE ASSUME THAT FRICTION IS
EVERYWHERE, BUT NOT HERE.

SHUTTLE WAS EASIER, RIGHT?

SHUTTLE WAS MUCH EASIER. [ LAUGHS ]

Man: 4, 3...

AND LIFTOFF OF SHUTTLE DISCOVERY.

REAL SPACECRAFT, LIKE THE SHUTTLE,

HAVE A CLEVER WAY OF STAYING IN CONTROL.

THEY HAVE DOZENS OF THRUSTERS,

SOME SO SMALL, YOU CAN BARELY SEE THEM.

LET'S SAY YOU WANT TO
MAKE A 90-DEGREE TURN.

WHICH THRUSTER WOULD YOU
USE, AND HOW WOULD IT WORK?

WELL, ON THE SPACE SHUTTLE,
WE HAVE 44 OF THOSE JETS,

AND SO TO MAKE THAT TURN,

WE'D PROBABLY USE THE ONES IN THE TAIL,

AND WE'D FIRE THEM THIS WAY.

NOW, ONCE YOU'VE FIRED
THEM, YOU'D START TO ROTATE,

AND THEN YOU WOULD HAVE
TO FIRE THE OPPOSITE ONES

TO STOP YOU IN THE ATTITUDE
THAT YOU WANTED TO SET.

OTHERWISE YOU JUST KEEP ON GOING.

THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT, YEAH.

WE WOULD JUST CONTINUE AROUND,
SORT OF LIKE THOSE HOVERCRAFT.

THEY JUST KEPT GOING AROUND AND AROUND.

YOU JUST SPIRAL OUT OF
CONTROL SO EASILY. EXACTLY.

I'M READY TO START ON
MY STARFIGHTER DESIGN.

I'LL USE ANTIMATTER TO POWER
IT, AND FOR TOTAL CONTROL,

I COULD USE LOTS OF THRUSTERS,
JUST LIKE THE SPACE SHUTTLE.

ONE POSSIBLE DESIGN FOR A STARFIGHTER

IS TO MAKE IT ROUND, LIKE
A PORCUPINE WITH QUILLS.

EACH QUILL WOULD BE A THRUSTER.

THIS WOULD GIVE MY DESIGN

UNPARALLELED 360-DEGREE MANEUVERABILITY...

AND A REALLY COOL LOOK.

BUT THERE'S A PROBLEM WITH THAT DESIGN...

THE SHAPE.

ALL THOSE THRUSTERS CREATE FRICTION.

IF MY STARFIGHTER TRIED
TO LAND ON A PLANET,

IT WOULD BURN UP IN THE ATMOSPHERE.

HOLLYWOOD DID GET SOME THINGS RIGHT.

FOR A STARFIGHTER THAT CAN
SLICE THROUGH THE ATMOSPHERE

AND MANEUVER IN OUTER SPACE,

YOU DO WANT A DESIGN THAT
LOOKS LIKE A JET FIGHTER.

I THINK I'LL USE FOUR ANTIMATTER ENGINES

THAT CAN FIRE FORWARDS
AS WELL AS BACKWARDS.

USED IN COMBINATION, THE
FOUR ENGINES WILL BE ABLE

TO ROTATE THE SHIP IN ANY DIRECTION.

PLUS, WE HAVE MICROTHRUSTERS,
GIVING YOU THE ABILITY

TO MAKE MINOR, PRECISE
CHANGES IN DIRECTION.

THAT'S WHY WE GET MAXIMUM
SPEED AND MAXIMUM MANEUVERABILITY.

MY STARFIGHTER WON'T
BANK LIKE LUKE SKYWALKER'S.

INSTEAD, IT WILL SWIVEL.

IT'LL FLY ONE WAY, THEN FIRE ITS THRUSTERS,

SWIVEL, AND HEAD OFF IN A NEW DIRECTION.

THAT'S HOW REAL SPACECRAFT TURN IN SPACE.

A SWARM OF FAST AND AGILE FIGHTERS

SHOULD BE ABLE TO BREACH
THE DEATH STAR'S DEFENSES,

BUT THEIR VERY SPEED AND MANEUVERABILITY

GIVE ME A NEW HEADACHE.

IF A FIGHTER PILOT TURNS TOO QUICKLY,

"G" FORCE WILL MAKE HIM BLACK OUT.

IN MY ULTRA-FAST STARFIGHTER,

THINGS COULD GET EVEN MORE EXTREME.

MY PILOT COULD BE CRUSHED TO DEATH.

DEEP UNDER COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY,

MY FRIEND PROFESSOR HOE
LING HAS A POWERFUL CENTRIFUGE

THAT I'M GOING TO NEED.

I GOT A PROBLEM.

HUMANS ARE MADE MOSTLY OF WATER,

SO THIS WATER-FILLED BALLOON
WILL REPRESENT MY PILOT.

AH, THERE'S OUR ASTRONAUT.

OKAY, LET'S PUT THE PILOT IN THE COCKPIT.

HOE LING'S CENTRIFUGE WILL
RE-CREATE THE "G" FORCES

A PILOT WOULD FEEL MAKING A
SHARP TURN IN MY STARFIGHTER.

A CAMERA INSIDE THE CENTRIFUGE
RECORDS WHAT HAPPENS.

WOW! [ LAUGHS ]

LOOK AT THAT! OH, MY GOD.

NOW, IF THAT WAS A HUMAN,

THAT HUMAN WOULD'VE
BEEN SQUASHED LIKE THAT.

NO WAY A HUMAN PILOT COULD WITHSTAND

THESE KINDS OF CENTRIFUGAL FORCES.

HOW MANY G's ARE WE AT RIGHT NOW?

THAT'S ABOUT 25 "G."

25 "G"?

SO A 100-POUND MAN
WOULD WEIGH 2,500 POUNDS?

OH, MY GOD.

I GUESS THAT'S WHAT HAPPENS
IN OUTER SPACE, RIGHT?

THAT'S WHAT YOU LOOK LIKE.

I NEED TO FIND A WAY OF STOPPING MY PILOT

FROM BEING SQUASHED
EVERY TIME HE TURNS A CORNER.

I THINK I HAVE THE ANSWER TO THE PROBLEM.

THE SOLUTION IS TO SUBMERGE
THE PILOT HERE IN WATER.

THIS TIME,

PROFESSOR LING IS GONNA
PUSH HIS CENTRIFUGE TO ITS LIMITS.

NOW FOR THE MOMENT OF TRUTH.

SO, HOW MANY G's ARE WE AT NOW?

62.60.

60! [ LAUGHS ]

LOOK. NO DEFORMATION AT ALL.

THE FIGHTER PILOT WOULD FEEL NOTHING,

EVEN SUBJECTED TO ASTRONOMICALLY
SEVERE ACCELERATIONS.

SO, BY GOLLY, IT WORKS.

THIS IS A FANTASTIC RESULT,

AND IT'S ALL THANKS TO THE BUOYANCY FORCE.

YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU TAKE A
SWIM, GRAVITY PUSHES YOU DOWN,

BUT THE BUOYANCY FORCE
DUE TO WATER PUSHES YOU UP,

AND THE TWO JUST ABOUT CANCEL,

AND THAT'S WHY YOU FLOAT IN WATER.

SO IF YOU INCREASE THE "G" FORCE,

YOU STILL HAVE A CANCELLATION

BETWEEN GRAVITY AND THE BUOYANCY FORCE.

NOW WE NEED TO INCORPORATE
A LIQUID COCKPIT INTO MY DESIGN.

IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE AN X-WING,

BUT I THINK THIS IS WHAT A REAL
STARFIGHTER MIGHT LOOK LIKE.

MY STARFIGHTER'S ALMOST READY.

IT'S FAST, IT'S AGILE, BUT
IT'S MISSING ONE THING...

SOME SERIOUS FIREPOWER.

I'M DESIGNING A STARFIGHTER TO
DESTROY THE MIGHTY DEATH STAR.

THE MISSION INVOLVES TAKING
ON A FLEET OF ENEMY FIGHTERS.

MY STARFIGHTER IS FAST AND MANEUVERABLE,

BUT AT THE MOMENT, IT HAS NO WEAPONS.

TO BEAT THE DEATH STAR'S FIGHTERS,

IT NEEDS A KILLER PUNCH.

STRIKE!

IN "STAR WARS", SOME SHIPS
ARE ARMED WITH A MASS DRIVER.

IT'S A SIMILAR CONCEPT TO WHAT
WE SCIENTISTS CALL A RAIL GUN.

WHAT'S SPECIAL ABOUT A
RAIL GUN IS ITS PROPELLANT...

ELECTRICITY IN MASSIVE QUANTITIES.

RAIL GUNS ARE ACTUALLY
NOT THAT DIFFICULT TO BUILD,

BUT THE NAVY HAS TAKEN
IT TO A WHOLE NEW LEVEL.

THEY'VE CREATED A MILITARY-GRADE RAIL GUN.

THEY TAKE AN OBJECT THAT
WEIGHS AS MUCH AS A BOWLING BALL,

AND THEY CAN HURL IT TO 7
TIMES THE SPEED OF SOUND.

THAT IS A FANTASTIC VELOCITY.

BUT I'M STILL NOT SURE
THAT IT'S FAST ENOUGH.

IT'S A BIT LIKE MY BOWLING BALL.

THE PROBLEM WITH A BOWLING BALL IS,

NO MATTER HOW HARD I TRY, I
CAN ONLY MAKE IT GO SO FAST.

THE LONGER THE BOWLING BALL
TAKES TO REACH THE TARGET,

THE MORE TIME THE TARGET
HAS TO MOVE OUT OF THE WAY.

I NEED A RAIL GUN THAT
FIRES A BULLET MUCH FASTER,

AND I THINK I KNOW JUST WHERE TO FIND ONE.

IN A BACKWATER OF NORTH CAROLINA,

SAM BARROS AND ARON KOSCHO

ARE WORKING ON THEIR OWN RAIL GUN.

THEIR PROJECTILE GOES
MUCH FASTER THAN THE NAVY'S

BECAUSE IT'S MUCH SMALLER.

Barros: THE GUN HAS ENOUGH
ENERGY TO SHOOT THIS BULLET OUT

ABOUT 6 KILOMETERS PER SECOND,

WHICH IS A LITTLE BIT OVER
12 TIMES THE SPEED OF SOUND.

IT'LL BE THE FASTEST THAT YOU
CAN FEASIBLY FIRE SOMETHING

IN EARTH'S ATMOSPHERE.

CHARGING.

12,000 VOLTS.

YOU'RE GOOD. GO.

READY? IN 3, 2, 1...

WOW.

DID YOU FEEL THE AIR BLAST? YES, I DID.

THE BULLET FLIES SO FAST,

ALL WE CAN SEE IS THE TRAIL
OF PLASMA LEFT IN ITS WAKE.

WOW! LOOK AT THAT.

A SMALLER BULLET

DOESN'T NECESSARILY CAUSE LESS DESTRUCTION.

SPEED DOES MORE DAMAGE THAN MASS.

IF YOU DOUBLE THE SPEED,
YOU QUADRUPLE THE ENERGY,

YOU QUADRUPLE THE DAMAGE.

THE GUYS HAVE GIVEN ME AN IDEA.

I WON'T SEND A BIG
PROJECTILE RELATIVELY SLOWLY.

INSTEAD, I'LL FIRE TINY PARTICLES

AT NEAR THE SPEED OF LIGHT.

I ACHIEVE MAXIMUM IMPACT AND SURPRISE.

PARTICLE-BEAM WEAPONS
WILL BE GREAT FOR A DOGFIGHT,

BUT THEY WON'T SCRATCH THE DEATH STAR.

TO DESTROY THE DEATH STAR,

THE LARGEST BATTLE STATION
TO APPEAR IN SCIENCE FICTION,

THAT REQUIRES A WHOLE NOTHER WEAPON.

THE PROTON TORPEDOES, IF
THEY'RE AIMED CORRECTLY,

THEY CAN GO IN THROUGH THIS EXHAUST PORT.

THAT EXHAUST PIPE IN THE DEATH STAR...

WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?

LIKE, SOMEBODY, THROW A GRATE OVER THAT.

LUKE SKYWALKER'S TORPEDO

KICK-STARTS A CHAIN REACTION
IN THE DEATH STAR'S CORE,

BUT I THINK THAT'S
SCIENCE-FICTION MUMBO JUMBO.

I WANT A WEAPON THAT DOESN'T
RELY ON A FICTITIOUS WEAK SPOT.

FIRST, IT HAS TO BE COMPACT.

YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING

THAT CAN BE CARRIED ON A STARFIGHTER.

SECOND, IT HAS TO HAVE ENORMOUS ENERGY,

SUFFICIENT TO BLOW UP AN
OBJECT THE SIZE OF A MOON.

AND I'VE GOT JUST THE THING.

[ ELECTRICITY CRACKLES ]

FIND OUT MORE ON...

IT'S ONE THING TO HAVE A
DOGFIGHT BETWEEN STARFIGHTERS.

IT'S A WHOLE NOTHER THING
TO TAKE ON THE DEATH STAR.

THE DEATH STAR IS A
GIGANTIC 100 MILES IN DIAMETER.

TO TAKE IT OUT, I'M GONNA NEED

THE MOST DESTRUCTIVE
MATERIAL IN THE UNIVERSE.

THE SAME SUBSTANCE WE
USE TO FUEL OUR STARFIGHTERS

CAN BE USED TO CREATE
THE ULTIMATE WEAPON...

AN ANTIMATTER BOMB.

A TEASPOON OF ANTIMATTER

WOULD BE ENOUGH TO
WIPE OUT ANY MODERN CITY.

AN ANTIMATTER BOMB IS
100 TIMES MORE POWERFUL

THAN A NUCLEAR WEAPON.

IT'S SO DESTRUCTIVE THAT
I WOULDN'T NEED TO RELY

ON THE DEATH STAR'S WEAK SPOT.

BUT EXPLODING A DEVICE
LIKE THAT COMES AT A PRICE.

NOT ONLY DO YOU WIPE OUT THE ENEMY.

YOU ALSO COMMIT SUICIDE.

BECAUSE THERE'S NO AIR IN OUTER SPACE,

THE RADIATION TRAVELS
AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT,

AND YOU CANNOT OUTRACE A LIGHT BEAM.

BUT THERE MAY BE A WAY
TO DESTROY THE DEATH STAR

WITHOUT DAMAGING MY STARFIGHTER.

IT'S TIME TO TELL THE FANS MY PLAN.

I THINK I GOT THE SCIENCE OF
THE WHOLE PROJECT CORRECT.

HOWEVER, I AM RATHER NERVOUS.

I'M NOT SURE WHETHER I GOT THE
SCIENCE-FICTION LORE CORRECT.

I MEAN, AFTER ALL, HERE IN THE AUDIENCE,

WE HAVE "STAR WARS" MECHANICS.

WE HAVE "STAR WARS" MAINTENANCE PEOPLE.

THESE PEOPLE LIVE AND
BREATHE THE LORE OF "STAR WARS."

I JUST HOPE I GET THAT PART RIGHT.

[ CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ]

TODAY, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT

WHAT IT WOULD TAKE TO GO
UP AGAINST THE DEATH STAR.

[ CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ]

WE START WITH THE BASIC
INGREDIENTS OF A STARFIGHTER.

I'M USING FOUR SUPER-POWERFUL
ANTIMATTER ROCKETS.

THEY FIRE IN BOTH DIRECTIONS.

NEXT, MY STARFIGHTER HAS
TWO PARTICLE-BEAM WEAPONS

TO WIPE OUT ENEMY FIGHTERS.

AND THEN THE QUESTION OF THE PILOT.

WHAT'S TO PREVENT THE
PILOT FROM BLACKING OUT

BECAUSE OF ALL THE "G" FORCES HE
EXPERIENCES AS HE MAKES A TURN?

WELL, HERE'S THE ANSWER.

I'M GONNA SUBMERGE THE PILOT IN A LIQUID.

AND FINALLY, TO BLOW UP THE DEATH STAR,

I'M GONNA USE AN ANTIMATTER BOMB.

IF A SWARM OF STARFIGHTERS
ATTACKS THE DEATH STAR,

AT LEAST ONE SHOULD GET THROUGH
THE DEFENSES TO THE SURFACE.

NOW THE MOMENT OF TRUTH.

YOU'RE UP AGAINST THE DEATH STAR.

YOU DROP A BOMB ON THE
SURFACE OF THE DEATH STAR,

AND THAT'S SUICIDE.

YOU KILL YOURSELF IN THE PROCESS.

YOU CANNOT OUTRACE X-RAYS.

YOU CANNOT OUTRACE GAMMA RAYS.

THAT'S WHY YOU HAVE TO GO DOWN A TRENCH

UNDERNEATH ANTI-ROCKET FIRE

AND DROP THE BOMB DOWN A SHAFT.

THE BOMB HAS TO BE DETONATED AT THE CENTER

NOT TO SET OFF A CHAIN REACTION,

'CAUSE THERE'S NO CHAIN
REACTION IN FUSION REACTORS.

THEY GOT THAT WRONG IN THE MOVIE.

YOU WANT TO DETONATE AT THE CENTER

SO THAT THE DEATH STAR
WILL SOAK UP ALL THE X-RAYS

AND GAMMA RAYS FROM THE ANTIMATTER BOMB.

THE DEATH STAR ITSELF
WILL SHIELD MY STARFIGHTER

FROM THE FASTEST AND MOST
DEADLY ELEMENTS OF THE BLAST.

SO, THERE YOU HAVE IT... HOW
TO TAKE ON THE DEATH STAR.

YOU'RE NOW ALL JEDI KNIGHTS! THANK YOU!

[ CHEERS AND APPLAUSE ]

I WAS REALLY IMPRESSED

BY JUST THE WAY THAT HE
TREATED THE STARFIGHTERS.

IT'S EXACTLY WHAT I IMAGINED.

HE EXPLAINS IT IN A WAY THAT I
REALLY GOT, SO THAT WAS COOL.

IN 150 YEARS, I THINK
IT'S PROBABLY POSSIBLE

TO BUILD A STARFIGHTER LIKE THIS.