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Wormhole Design and Physics
The wormhole between Kaa-Yvanti and
Losnarch, with a ship that passed by just ahead visible through the
hole as well as the maintenance stations on both sides. The exotic
matter framework is cubical; major systems employ dodecahedral
frameworks instead, but they require much more maintenance.
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The optimal design for a wormhole varies, since it depends on the existing and projected traffic, both data and material, that the gateway will have to handle. Where anticipated or existing traffic is low, a design with relatively few faces, and therefore transport paths, is generally used. In a situation in which there is already a high volume of traffic through the region the gateway will be serving, or when the wormhole is anticipated to be greatly used, a dodecahedral or other multi-face design may be employed to maximize the available traffic paths.
Wormhole construction is also based on economies of scale. The more raw matter is available for conversion to exotic matter, the larger the gateway can be for the same initial effort in introducing the 'seed' gate. The counter to this equation is that the larger the gate, the greater its instability, necessitating more complex control apparatus and software routines to prevent an implosion.
In a wormhole, the exotic matter framework acts like the frame of a tent, holding up the fabric of space. Since it is difficult to keep the wormhole mouth open and only the negative energy of the framework permits it, one could say that the edges of the wormhole (space-time) are pulled taut over each face of the polyhedron (or bowed slightly inward) rather than bowing outward. Hence a non-supported wormhole would be spherical in shape (though brief in existence), but a supported one conforms to the shape of its support structure. This analogy might not be completely appropriate, but when dealing with exotic matter and space-time itself things are often counter- intuitive. In fact the wormhole is pulled taut over the polyhedron faces, but since it is only possible to see along light-rays in space- time, the effect is that the entire structure looks like a distorted polyhedron you can see the other side through..
When you move towards the wormhole, it will deflect you as if it had antigravity. The thrust necessary to overcome this deflection/repulsion will push you back into your berth until you actually enter the wormhole � at which point the repulsion of the hole makes thrust unnecessary, causing the drive to cut off. Hence the expression "going over the hill" among space pilots for going through a wormhole. The larger the hole, the more intensely the shifts in force are experienced by passengers.
Related links:
Time and Scale (short story)
