Skip to main content

Is there faster-than-light communication in the Star Wars universe (other than hyperdrive)?


Especially in the original trilogy, there are several plot points that imply that there is no faster-than-light communications in the Star Wars universe, other than using a hyperdrive-equipped ship to physically carry information from one place to another. For example:




  • Leia tries to physically take the Death Star plans to Alderaan. If there were a way to electronically transmit the information FTL you'd think they've have just done that, rather than hand-carry the stuff.




  • Leia has to go pick up Obi-Wan on Tatooine. Seems more complicated than sending him a note and/or wiring him some money for a ship.





Some potential counter examples:




  • Vader talking to the Emperor via video chat in ESB and RoTJ. Of course they could have just been close by, and indeed are during RoTJ.




  • Tarkin gets a report of a ship like the Falcon blasting out of Mos Eisley as they arrive. Seems like any comm would have had to travel very fast to beat them to the Death Star as Han and crew were in the Falcon.





So, is there any OT evidence of FTL communication? How is this supported or not by the rest of the canon?



Answer



In The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Vader communicates with the Emperor using Holonet communications.


Since Vader does so in RotJ before the Emperor arrives via hyperspace travel, and in realtime, yes, it's very much a fast FTL signal.


We also know from ESB that it's subject to interference from phsyical bodies. He orders his flagship out of the asteroids to get a clear signal.


Why Leia and Obiwan don't use it is a matter of conjecture; that the Holonet is used by the empire isn't, and it's a safe bet it's owned and monitored by the Emperor.


Leia is committing high treason by contacting Obi Wan. And, she intended to ask in person, but Vader caught up with her first, so in desperation, she sent R2-D2.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

harry potter - Do the Kwikspell courses work?

In Harry Potter we are introduced to Kwikspell course in The Chamber of Secrets (and never hear about it again). We see Filch taking courses, presumably by mail. The descriptions of Kwikspell make me think it is for people who are weak in magic (kind of like how Neville was supposed to be when he was younger), but had magic in them nonetheless. However, Ron's comments later in the chapter make it sound like it is mainly for Squibs to learn magic. However, it is strongly implied through out all the books that Squibs are essentially Muggles, and will never be able to do magic. How then is a Kwikspell course supposed to work? Do we have any information to know if it works at all? Is it a scam? An answer from any level of canon is welcome. Answer Kwikspell courses are (probably) useful to some wizards, but not to squibs. The Kwikspell course literature comes with two testimonials. Madam Z. Nettles of Topsham writes: ‘I had no memory for incantations and my potions were a family joke...
Post a Comment
Read more

futurama - How much time is lost in 'Time Keeps on Slippin''

In time Keeps on Slippin' , Farnsworth creates a basketball team which he matures by abusing Chronitons. This leads to time skipping forward by random, but ever increasing amounts. How much time was skipped in this way? Answer Unfortunately, I don't think a good estimate can be made for this, for two reasons: Many of the time skips move forward by an indeterminate amount of time. At one point, the Professor mentions localized regions of space skipping forward much more than others. We then see two young boys on the street below complaining about having to pay social security, only to suddenly become senior citizens and start complaining about wanting their money. Thus, each individual could have experienced a different amount of time skippage.
Post a Comment
Read more

languages - Do we ever see written English in the Star Wars films?

In Empire Strikes Back , we see a transcription of what R2's beeps and bloops mean, but it's not English (sorry for the low quality, it's from the 2004 DVDs): I'd assume it's what Basic looks like when written, but is there some point in the the Star Wars films we see written English instead? (This sort of spun off from a discussion in How do people understand astromech droids? .) Answer At one point there was English but it has been phased out in subsequent versions of the films. Chris Gould at DVD Active did a comparison of all versions of each of the Star Wars films, and in his comparison of Episode 4 , there are a couple of screenshots showing how the power gauge for the Death Star tractor beam was changed. I imagine there are probably more to be found in his other comparisons but I haven't got around to reading those yet.
Post a Comment
Read more

Was the "pure soul" of Harry's what had really hurt Voldemort?

In the Order of the Phoenix, Voldemort possesses Harry, and it hurts. Greatly. I think that Dumbledore explained that it was because Voldemort's rotten soul was incapable of assimilating Harry's pure soul, that Voldemort didn't understand the love and friendship etc that Harry has in his heart. But, I think it was a lie. Remember that in Deathly Hallows, while looking for information regarding Horcruxes, it is discovered that it is in fact possible to merge a soul fragment back, but that the process was extremely painful. Now then, if Voldemort tried to possess Harry, and Harry had a fragment of Voldemort's soul, I think that it could have been the true cause of Voldemort's pain: the fact of having his soul so close of another fragment. I think that Dumbledore knew that fact, but had to lie to Harry because it was inappropriate to let him know that he had one of Voldemort's soul fragments at the moment. Is that right? Or was it truly the pure soul of Harry's...
Post a Comment
Read more