Gravimetrics
Gravimetrics is a science first developed in the Flying Islands of Jasonia as an offshoot of their anti-gravity program. Unlike other levitation technologies, such as gravity inversion rigs, gravimetrics relies on the simple use of reversed polarization of the gravity field, using magnetic repulsion to artificially levitate objects. The first such use of this technology came about after the Infernal War with the People's Republic of Hell, in which Jasonia appropriated Infernal science to create Gravtrains. The Gravtrains use gravimetric technology to levitate, looking much like a traditional steam locomotive, but with the ability to fly. The technology was used to overhaul the Jasonian mass transit system and became a popular method to haul large amounts of goods. In later years the technology saw limited use in military application for airships.
Since the beginning of the Shirerithian rearmament drive spurred by the confrontation with Jingdao, military engineers have begun to look, with renewed interest, at the applications of gravimetrics in land and naval warfare.
Unlike the gravity inversion rigs which rely on their own onboard power source, typically in the form of a scaled down fission reactor, the magnetic repulsors of gravimetric vehicles are powered by one or more banks of rechargeable fuel cells. This has the effect of tying gravimetric vehicles to a ground based logistic infrastructure, denying them the freedom inherent in the configuration of the vastly more expensive gravrigs, such as the IRS Medusa.
The Fuel cell problem
The fuel cells presently have a storage lifespan of 2,000 hours or just over 83 days before they begin to degrade making it difficult, and expensive, to build up a strategic reserve with which to launch so-called wars of choice.
This was eventually resolved by engineers from Ryker Airships who made design proposals for a pocket fission reactors to be installed in lieu of the capacious and inefficient battery banks originally installed by Red Bear LLC.
A facility is being established on the island of Yardistan for the purpose of stockpiling fissile material and undertaking engine conversion works. Work on site construction is scheduled to begin in mid 1653 with an eventual operational commencement date of 1655. However, a Red Team review of the project and its proposed programme of works suggested that the upgrade programme might require at least a decade of sustained infrastructure development before the first operational conversions could begin. A prototype of the pocket reactor is not now expected until 1656 at the earliest.
A further study of still more efficient energy transfer solutions is being undertaken by Deep Energy of Kezan.
An investigation of Ashkenatzan fusion reactor technology was undertaken by the Directorate of Research & Engineering in 1653; it's somewhat succinct conclusion was:
"As it is if you've got exotic particles being flung about inverting gravity or making electromagnetic repulsion fields... you don't really want leaking plasmafucking up containment fieldsproducing unstable systemic cascade effects."
