{"id":18494,"date":"2018-05-31T18:37:08","date_gmt":"2018-05-31T10:37:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/science-of-the-expanse-tv-show-sticks-to-space-realities-with-one-big-exception\/"},"modified":"2018-05-31T18:37:08","modified_gmt":"2018-05-31T10:37:08","slug":"science-of-the-expanse-tv-show-sticks-to-space-realities-with-one-big-exception","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/science-of-the-expanse-tv-show-sticks-to-space-realities-with-one-big-exception\/","title":{"rendered":"Science of \u2018The Expanse\u2019: TV show sticks to space realities (with one big exception)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Zero-G
Spaceship pilot Alex Kamal (played by Cas Anvar) turns a zero-gravity somersault in a scene from \u201cThe Expanse.\u201d (Alcon \/ Syfy via YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

LOS ANGELES \u2014 The sci-fi saga known as \u201cThe Expanse\u201d has attracted a huge fan following in part because it gets the details of life in space so right, from how to handle zero gravity to what happens when you open up your helmet visor in a hard vacuum.<\/p>\n

But there\u2019s one space reality that the producers have thrown out the air lock.<\/p>\n

In space, no one can hear your spaceship scream, because there\u2019s no medium to transmit the sound waves. But in \u201cThe Expanse,\u201d as in \u201cStar Wars\u201d and other space operas, spaceships whoosh, crash and roar with regularity.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe actually tried with Season 1 to do it realistically, to not have the ships make a sound,\u201d showrunner Naren Shankar said last week in Los Angeles at the National Space Society\u2019s International Space Development Conference.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe problem is, it\u2019s a huge element in appreciating the drama,\u201d he said. \u201cWhat you can\u2019t accurately convey when you take the sound out of it is the incredible mass of these things, the incredible speeds at which they move. And those things have dramatic effect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shankar said the show\u2019s producers decided to use sound to \u201cguide the audience to understand what\u2019s happening\u201d when spaceships get revved up.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s poetic license,\u201d he said. \u201cBut at the end of the day, if something is scary, I want it to scare the shit out of people. I want the sounds to scare them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\""Expanse"
Cast members from \u201cThe Expanse\u201d (and friends) face the cameras at the International Space Development Conference in Los Angeles. From left lower row: cast members Steven Strait, Cas Anvar, Cara Gee and Wes Chatham. Upper row: JPL engineer Bobak Ferdowsi, showrunner Naren Shankar, writer Hallie Lambert, Nerdist moderator Kyle Hill. (GeekWire Photo \/ Alan Boyle)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Another feature that\u2019s fudged a bit has to do with propulsion: The spaceships of \u201cThe Expanse\u201d don\u2019t resort to faster-than-light travel, as other space shows such as \u201cStar Wars\u201d and \u201cBattlestar Galactica\u201d do. But they do zoom faster than what\u2019s possible with any known technology. That\u2019s thanks to the Epstein drive, an invention that involves fusion power, magnetic coil exhaust acceleration and a lot of hand-waving.<\/p>\n

Other twists, however, hew more closely to the laws of physics.<\/p>\n

For example, in one scene, two characters out in the vacuum of space touch their helmets together to carry on a conversation without using their radios. It\u2019s analogous to the old trick of putting a glass up against the wall to hear what\u2019s going on in the next room.<\/p>\n

And speaking of helmets, there\u2019s another scene in which a spacewalker opens up his helmet to remove a loose wire that\u2019s stuck inside. Some viewers wondered whether anyone could survive that scenario in real life, but the trick is that the spacewalker takes a big breath before opening the visor, and then lets the breath out during the few seconds that the helmet\u2019s open.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was to put to rest that trope that your mask bursts and your head explodes,\u201d Shankar said.<\/p>\n

Zero gravity also poses conundrums galore for space shows: The makers of \u201cThe Expanse\u201d try to avoid hand-waving explanations of artificial gravity. If a ship is accelerating at a rate of 1 G, no problem. But if not, then spacefliers have to strap in, engage magnetic boots to keep their feet on the ground, or deal with the challenges of zero-G.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Expanse\u201d relies on Hollywood tricks like wire harnesses, blue-screen backgrounds and some serious special effects to show how astronauts tumble in zero-G. \u201cThe wire work really hurt my junk,\u201d one of the show\u2019s stars, Cas Anvar, complained. \u201cIt does!\u201d<\/p>\n

One scene tested the limits of zero-G science: How do you drink a beer in space? In the scene, Anvar\u2019s character is sipping on a beer as he\u2019s cruising along in the Rocinante, the spaceship he\u2019s piloting, with \u201cI\u2019m So Lonesome I Could Cry\u201d twanging on the sound system.<\/p>\n

As Anvar sings along, he takes an occasional pull on an old-fashioned beer can.<\/p>\n