Top all-time · #2047
ToughSF
Personal blog · toughsf.blogspot.comsciencewriting
ToughSF is a personal blog at toughsf.blogspot.com about science and writing. Since 2016, 37 different Hacker News readers have linked it 56 times, most often “The Expanse's Epstein Drive (2019)”. It is still writing: the last post was on 2025-05-28, and you can follow it by feed.
Too few sampled comments (23) to say how often HN recommends it.?
Why HN links it
HN readers link ToughSF's physics-based critiques of sci-fi technology, mainly its Epstein drive fusion-propulsion analysis, plus posts on space radiators, stealth and laser weapons.
Summarised by Claude from a sample of 23 HN comments that link here. Each comment is marked recommending, critical or neutral (citing without judging); how this works.
A blog dedicated to helping Science Fiction authors create and discuss worlds where a realistic setting can still serve the fiction.
Most-linked posts?
- The Expanse's Epstein Drive (2019)6 people · 7 mentions · first linked 2020-06-09
- Realistic fusion drive with Epstein Drive-like performance5 people · 7 mentions · first linked 2019-11-21
- The Lofstrom Loop: A Bridge to Space2 people · 2 mentions · first linked 2024-01-03
- /2016/10/the-hydrogen-steamer-stealth-spaceship.html2 people · 2 mentions · first linked 2017-12-14
- /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html?m=12 people · 2 mentions · first linked 2022-10-09
- The Nuclear Spear: Casaba Howitzer2 people · 2 mentions · first linked 2016-06-23
- Anti-Orbit Laser Submarines (2017)2 people · 2 mentions · first linked 2021-11-01
- Fusion Highways in Space (2021)2 people · 2 mentions · first linked 2021-03-12
What Hacker News says?
Here's an argument that a drive with Epstein performance is actually doable: https://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dr...
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “The Expanse UI Design”Submitted Space Tethers: Stringing Up the Solar System as a story · 144 points
HN discussionPerhaps for casual readers. But say you write a pop culture hit, people start looking deeper, and the gaps become glaring. Like the fusion drives in the expanse, it's hand waved on the first read through, but on the second I found that someone had calculated it online (like this https://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dr... ) and now it kinda ruins the vibe, the author should have chosen something…
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html?m=1
on “108B Pixel Scan of Johannes Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring”Submitted Nuclear Reactor Lasers: From fission to photon (2019) as a story · 67 points
HN discussionRegarding reproduction, I'm willing to write that off to advanced medical technology doing DNA repair. Most of the plot wouldn't be that different with slower space drives, so I wasn't too bothered by that either. But fwiw, it turns out it is possible to get that level of rocket performance, if ToughSF got their numbers right: https://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dr... It wouldn't look the same…
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “Human brains are preconfigured with instructions for understanding the world”Submitted Anti-Orbit Laser Submarines (2017) as a story · 64 points
HN discussionSounds like the Epstein Drive, perhaps version 0.1: https://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dr...
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “New nuclear engine concept could help realize 3-month trips to Mars”Submitted Laser Launch into Orbit as a story · 60 points
HN discussionThere's a writeup here that you may be interested in, if you haven't seen it already: https://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dr... The author suggests creating a fusion reaction well behind the ship, but channeling the useful parts of it in an electromagnetic field tunnel to create thrust while dissipating the heat more effectively. Vaguely like Project Orion, but with a more-or-less continuous ex…
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “Akin's Laws of Spacecraft Design”Submitted Realistic fusion drive with Epstein Drive-like performance as a story · 50 points
HN discussionThe reason I'm personally most excited is interplanetary or even (generation ship) interstellar travel. Fusion fuel is the only practical fuel we know of with enough energy density to provide enough "umph" for long-distance trajectories to be traveled along, at speeds faster than what the Voyager probes had to achieve using multi-year planetary slingshot trajectories. Fusion rocket information: https://en.wikipedia.…
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “Three papers highlight results of record yield nuclear fusion shot”Submitted Thermal Decomposition of CO2 with Nuclear Heat as a story · 44 points
HN discussion> The idea that a magical new engine would suddenly appear that made many of the things in the tv series possible. Assuming you're talking about the Epstein Drive and not the protomolecule... it didn't suddenly appear, it was invented. And, surprisingly enough, it's way closer to realistic than most scifi. http://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dri... > The idea that there would be a complete backt…
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html?m=1
on “MythBusters Helped a Wrongly Convicted Man Prove His Innocence”Submitted ToughSF: Anti-Orbit Laser Submarines as a story · 18 points
HN discussionRather the opposite isn’t it? What you’re saying is ‘regardless of relative benefit or cost, humanity would make the decision to do interstellar travel - because reasons’. I’m pointing out that relative benefit and cost matter and tend to drive decisions - and that the massive cost with (currently) no plausible benefit which could outweigh it, makes it unlikely we would end up taking that course. Unless we discover…
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html?m=1
on “Wave activity on Titan strong enough to erode the coastlines of lakes and seas”Submitted Nuclear Explosively Formed Penetrators as a story · 16 points
HN discussionHere is an article on this topic that goes heavily in depth on the topic: http://toughsf.blogspot.com/2018/04/permanent-and-perfect-st... Note that this is for strategic level stealth, which is to say your enemy doesn't even know you're in system. Tactical level stealth is vastly easier, and can be as simple as launching several hundred thousand heated decoys into system before entering yourself - one of these is th…
Comment linking /2018/04/permanent-and-perfect-stealth-in-space.html
on “Tracking “Dark Ships” with New Satellite Technology”Submitted The Expanse's Epstein Drive (2019) as a story · 12 points
HN discussionHere's one source that does: http://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dri...
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “The Physics of Space War: How Orbital Dynamics Constrain Engagements [pdf]”Submitted The Laser Revolution Part II: Ground, Sea and Grid as a story · 3 points
HN discussionThere's an interesting speculation as to how an Epstein Drive could work in reality. The heat management problem is pretty central: http://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dri... The discussion at the bottom of the page has also a lot of interesting ideas.
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “The Physics of Space War: How Orbital Dynamics Constrain Engagements [pdf]”Submitted The Laser Revolution Part I: Megawatt beams to the skies as a story · 3 points
HN discussionI'd like to share an interesting read about the prospect of a nuclear-powered Starship. ( http://toughsf.blogspot.com/2021/10/nuclear-conversion-for-s... ) Basically, it's not much about safety, it's also that the benefits of nuclear are marginal compared to what the Starship is already capable of, and in many mission configurations, it's actually worse.
Comment linking /2021/10/nuclear-conversion-for-starship.html?m=1
on “Hubble finds evidence of persistent water vapor in one hemisphere of Europa”Submitted Fusion Highways in Space (2021) as a story · 3 points
HN discussionIt's worse than you think. Here's a really interesting article on what it would take to get Epstein drive performance: https://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dr... This thing would produce more power than all of civilization does today. No radiator could handle it. They use laser fusion, exploding D-He3 fuel pellets well behind the ship, with a giant magnetic nozzle. A tungsten heat shield protect…
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “Electric Propulsion Magnets Ready for Space Tests”Submitted The Lofstrom Loop: A Bridge to Space as a story · 3 points
HN discussionIf we're talking of this kind of efforts, why not to discuss this - https://toughsf.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-dr... . Seems in the realm of physics, with some more impressing results...
Comment linking /2019/10/the-expanses-epstein-drive.html
on “Magnetoplasma drive could make Mars transit take 39 days?”Submitted The Lofstrom Loop: A Bridge to Space as a story · 3 points
HN discussionOkay, so it's a stealth ship: http://toughsf.blogspot.com/2016/10/the-hydrogen-steamer-ste...
Comment linking /2016/10/the-hydrogen-steamer-stealth-spaceship.html
on “Is ‘Oumuamua an alien spacecraft? First scans show no signs of technology”Submitted Orbital tethers – cheap space transportation by flinging stuff as a story · 3 points
HN discussion
