ftl travel dune

• Technologies and developments
• Holtzman technology
• Spacing Guild
• Terms and meanings

Space travel

• View history

Space travel played a major role in the evolution and expansion of humanity throughout the known universe . Two forms of space travel existed: faster than light space travel , and conventional space travel .

• 1 Faster than light travel
• 2.1 Space Travel Calculator
• 4 References
• 5 Behind the Scenes

Faster than light travel [ ]

Supposed early draft for Jodorowsky´s Dune

For several thousand years, faster than light travel ( FTL travel or space-folding ) was conducted exclusively by the Spacing Guild , using Spacefolder vessels piloted by Guild navigators that folded space-time and moved almost immeasurable distances in the blink of the eye.

This form of travel, while extremely expensive, was also not safe as one in ten ships that used space folding engine disappeared, at least during the early years of the technology's use before the advent of Navigators . It was utilized for both commercial and military purposes. Space-folding made use of two key factors:

• The folding of space-time, which was accomplished by the practical application of the Holtzman Effect .
• The plotting of a safe course through folded space by a Guild Navigator , who used prescient planning induced by vast amounts of the Spice Melange .

Eventually, at some point between the fall of the Atreides Empire and the discovery of the Dar-es-Balat hoard, Ixian navigation machines broke the guild monopoly on foldspace by providing a means of safely navigating foldspace without a navigator. [1] [2]

Conventional space travel [ ]

The old FTL conventional space travel was used mainly for travel within the confines of a star system (not for interstellar travel). However, before the discovery of the new faster-than-light travel method, it was also used for long-distance space travel. The old method was described as "outracing photons". Even after space-folding became the primary means of interstellar travel, many Imperial warships still kept their old FTL drives as an alternative to the much faster but less reliable Holtzmann engines.

A calculation for velocities obtainable with old FTL conventional space travel can be made from the book "The Butlerian Jihad" by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson. Before the Battle of Earth , the unified Armada is stated to have gathered at Salusa Secundus . This planet is stated in this wikipedia to be located in the  Gamma Waiping system which is about 130.8 light-years form Earth , again according to this wikipedia.  In the book "The Butlerian Jihad"  Xavier Harkonnen states that the Armada takes over a month to reach Earth while traveling at its maximum sustainable speed.  Using terrestrial time periods (days, weeks, months) for simplicity's sake, we get 1,591.4 c for a month, 1,136.72 c for six weeks, and 795.7 c for two months ( c being equal to the speed of light).

Space Travel Calculator [ ]

Space Travel Calculator: In the realm of modern astrophysics and space exploration, understanding the time and resources required for interstellar and interplanetary journeys is crucial. The Space Travel Calculator is a novel tool that provides enthusiasts and researchers alike with valuable insights into potential travel times between various celestial bodies, taking into account several complex variables. This digital utility not only demystifies the vastness of space travel but also fosters a deeper appreciation for the challenges of space exploration. For detailed computations and insights, visit the calculator here: Space Travel Calculator

See also [ ]

• Spice Melange
• Holtzman Effect

References [ ]

• ↑ God Emperor of Dune
• ↑ Heretics of Dune

Behind the Scenes [ ]

The connection between faster than light travel and the Holtzman Effect is not explicitly mentioned by Frank Herbert . It is a connection made in the prequel novels by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson .

In the ' Legends of Dune ' trilogy, the pair describe the time shortly before and during the discovery of space-folding. In these works the discovery of space-folding is attributed to Norma Cenva , who goes on to become the first prescient folded space navigator. Prior to this, although described in 'The Machine Crusade' as "outracing the old faster than light method", vessels still took weeks or months to cross between even the closest stars.

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5 Faster-Than-Light Travel Methods and Their Plausibility

Science tells us that it is impossible for an object to travel at light speed, let alone faster than that. But so many of our favorite science-fiction movies, games, and TV shows rely on faster-than-light travel to craft their interplanetary adventures.

Let’s take a look at five means of FTL found in sci-fi that don’t break the rules of relativity and examine how plausible they are based on the science behind them.

1. Hyperdrive

Popularized by Star Wars and used extensively in fiction, a hyperdrive enables a spaceship to travel at FTL speeds by entering another dimension known as “hyperspace.” The spaceship isn’t actually traveling faster than the speed of light, but rather is making use of hyperspace as a shortcut, and the hyperdrive is the mechanism that shunts the spaceship into and out of this parallel dimension.

Specific coordinates within hyperspace have corresponding coordinates in normal space, but the distance between those two points will be shorter in hyperspace, allowing for a faster journey. Before making a “hyperspace jump,” calculations must be made to find the matching coordinates between hyperspace and normal space in order to know when and where to exit hyperspace at the desired normal space destination.

Is it plausible?

Physicist Bukrhard Heim proposed a theory in 1977 that FTL travel may be possible by using magnetic fields to enter higher-dimensional space. The theory uses a mathematical model that calls upon six or more dimensions in an attempt to resolve incompatibilities between quantum mechanics and general relativity, but Heim’s ideas have not been accepted in mainstream science. Still, the fact that a theoretical physicist devoted a large portion of his life in pursuit of a theory that could lead to a means of space travel lends the concept of hyperspace a little more credibility than if it were simply the fancy of a sci-fi writer.

2. Jump Drive

Seen in such works as Battlestar Galactica , a jump drive allows for instantaneous teleportation between two points. Similar to a hyperdrive, coordinates must be calculated to ensure a safe jump; the longer the desired travel distance, the more complex the calculation. In theory, there is no limit to how far a jump can take a ship, but an incorrect calculation may result in a catastrophic collision with a planet or space debris.

The Dune universe’s FTL, based on the fictional “Holtzman effect,” can also be considered a jump drive.

Master of hard sci-fi Isaac Asimov was the first to suggest the idea of a jump drive in the Foundation series, which lends some credibility to the idea. However, most fiction doesn’t clearly explain the principles of physics that allow for this teleportation, making it impossible to claim a jump drive as plausible. However, if it functions by opening a wormhole…

3. Wormholes

A wormhole, as seen in the Stargate franchise, allows for near-instantaneous travel across vast distances. Wormholes may be naturally-occurring or man-made, but are almost always temporary and serve as tunnels through spacetime.

Imagine our universe as a piece of paper, and an ant walking on that piece of paper as a spaceship. If the ant wants to walk from one end of that piece of paper to the other, the fastest way to do so would be to travel in a straight line. But paper, like space, bends. If you bend the paper into a U shape, the ant’s journey goes largely undisturbed – it still has to traverse the same distance along that line. However, in 3D space, the two ends of the paper are very close to each other now. Cut off a piece of a drinking straw and let the ant use it as a bridge or tunnel between the two ends of the paper, and the journey is suddenly much shorter.

While we have never directly observed any evidence for one, wormholes are theoretically possible. Albert Einstein and his colleague Nathan Rosen first discovered wormholes in 1935 as solutions to equations within Einstein’s general theory of relativity – the math says they can exist.

Since then, other scientists, including Stephen Hawking, have argued that it may be possible to traverse a wormhole, under the right circumstances. The debate surrounding wormholes isn’t about their plausibility, but rather how they may be created and sustained.

4. Slipstream

The concept of slipstream can be found in such works as Star Trek , Doctor Who , and the Halo video game franchise, but there is no widely-agreed upon definition of what slipstream is or how it works beyond it being a means of FTL. We’ll consider the slipstream seen in Gene Roddenberry’s Andromeda , where it is “not the best way to travel faster than light, it’s just the only way,” as per the show’s protagonist.

Slipstream is a form of interdimensional highway in which ships ride a series of slipstream “strings” – the unseen connections between all objects in the universe. These strings are in constant flux and form a tangled mess of intersections and divergent paths. Any time a pilot reaches a fork in the road, he has to guess which is the correct path to take to continue along toward his desired destination. Before the pilot makes that decision, both paths are simultaneously the correct and incorrect route, and it is the act of choosing a path that forces one to be correct and the other to be incorrect – if this made you think of Shrödinger’s cat, that does seem to be the basis for this concept. A computer selects the “correct” path 50% of the time, but due to intuition, a human picks the correct path 99.9% of the time.

There are no mainstream scientific theories that support this idea of slipstream. Reading the “lore” of this means of FTL evokes fantastical interpretations of string theory, quantum entanglement, and other concepts in modern physics, but the ideas are supported only through their internal consistency rather than actual fact, much like a well-explained magic system that allows fictional wizards to cast spells.

5. Warp Drive

Popularized by Star Trek , a warp drive distorts space around a ship while leaving the ship itself inside a “bubble” of normal space. The space in front of the ship is contracted, while the space behind it is expanded, and the ship “rides” the distortion wave at FTL speeds. Technically, it is not the ship that is moving, but rather space itself, which is how we avoid breaking any laws of physics.

Imagine a surfer slowly paddling back to shore. When a wave comes, it will lower the water level in front of him and raise the water level behind him, and he can ride the downward slope all the way to shore. Relative to the wave, the surfer isn’t moving – he’s staying between the crest and the trough, and it is instead the wave that is moving.

Surfing doesn’t quite work like that, but it’s a simplification that we can all visualize. In a similar manner to how a wave will distort water to propel a surfer, a warp drive will distort space to propel a ship.

In 1994, the Alcubierre drive was proposed as a theoretical means of FTL travel and is based on a mathematical solution to equations within Einstein’s general theory of relativity. Just like a warp drive, the Alcubierre drive would contract space in front of a spaceship and expand space behind it.

NASA has been actively researching this technology since 2012 , and the lead researcher even worked with a 3D artist to develop a model of what a warp-capable ship might look like . As far as real-life FTL goes, warp is the current front-runner to becoming reality.

As far as real-life FTL travel goes, the fictional favorites can be found in Star Trek and Stargate : the warp drive, and wormholes. Both are theoretically possible; however, both require further scientific breakthroughs before practical testing can begin. In either case, we need to discover “exotic matter” – hypothetical particles with negative mass – to get these mechanisms to work. “Element zero” from the Mass Effect series, the rare material that is essential to FTL travel in that universe, doesn’t quite fit the description, but the lore is at least scientifically sound in suggesting that some new, rare form of matter is required to make this technological leap.

The good news is that scientists don’t believe this is a matter of if, but rather when. There will be a time in the future when a stately, bald man in uniform will sit back in a command chair and relay the order, “Engage.”

Is The Technology of Dune Possible? The Debrief consulted with Dr. Kevin Grazier, a respected science advisor, to discuss the technology and science in 'Dune.'

Often cited as  the bestselling science fiction novel of all time , Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel  Dune  features a unique blend of technology and human drama that has stood the test of time. This complex universe, and its even more complex ideas on time, space, and human consciousness, resulted in five follow up novels by Herbert himself, 16 additional books co-authored by his son  Brian Herbert  and sci-fi veteran author  Kevin J Anderson ,  a 1984 movie , a pair of early 2000s TV miniseries, and more recently the box office crushing  2021 epic film adaptation .

Hoping to find the overlap between science fact and science fiction, [something  we  Debriefers  often like to do ] as well as highlight the unique ideas explored by Herbert almost sixty years ago,  The Debrief  took a look at some of the critical technologies featured in the various Dune books and adaptations to see how close humanity is to recreate any of them. 

These include the bug-like flying machines known as ornithopters, personal shields used in hand-to-hand combat, weapons of sound that only appear in the 1984 film, water-conserving survival suits, and a form of faster than light space travel known as “folding space” that is at the very heart of the entire  Dune  saga.

To assist in this effort,  The Debrief  reached out to Dr. Kevin Grazier, the staff scientist at  Masten Space Systems . Grazier was previously a research scientist at  NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory  on the  Cassini/Huygens Mission  to Saturn and its moon Titan and also spent time teaching at  West Point .

Grazier has served as the science advisor to several TV series and feature films during his distinguished career, including the Peabody-Award-winning  BATTLESTAR GALACTICA  and the Academy-Award-winning  GRAVITY .

Finally, Grazier is the editor of the anthology,  The Science of Dune , and the co-author of the “ Hollyweird Science ” series of books that explore the depiction of science, scientists, and the culture of science in TV and film.

“While technology enabled the story of the original  Dune  novel, particularly faster-than-light (FTL) travel,” explained Grazier in an email to  The Debrief , “the novel is not what would be called “hard” science fiction, and technology largely takes a back seat to the human drama.” Nonetheless, Grazier noted, “most of the technology from the original book makes its way into the 1984 film: [as well as the 2021 adaptation].”

Can Ornithopters Be Built?

At the center of the  Dune  story is a desert planet named Arrakis, primarily because it is the only place in Herbert’s universe one can find the  spice “mélange.”  

Unfortunately for those hoping to mine this psychoactive substance that [ among other semi-mystical elements ] is the key to the faster-than-light travel keeping the multi-planet “Imperium” together, Arrakis is inhabited by massive sandworms that devour pretty much anything moving on the planet’s sandy surface. As a result, the book’s main characters primarily traverse Arrakis in flying machines known as ornithopters that flap their wings like giant birds, house flies, or even dragonflies.

“The one bit of Herbert’s technology that was treated the most unevenly [in the 1984 film] was the ornithopters,” Grazier told  The Debrief . “They were ubiquitous in the book and made only a perfunctory cameo in the 1984 film.”

This, Grazier notes, was primarily for budgetary reasons and not a creative choice made by Lynch. However, he adds, “with almost 40 years of technical innovations (and 25 Moore’s Law doublings), Denis Villeneuve could afford to bring all of Herbert’s science and tech to the big screen—even the ornithopters—with the same scale and grandeur as he depicted Arrakis and the shai hulud [the sandworms].”

Featured much more prominently in the recent film adaptation,  The Embry Riddle Aeronautical University  decided to ask whether or not a vehicle like this could actually be constructed and flown.

“Aeronautical engineers have nearly perfected the design of fixed-wings structure,”  a post on the university’s site  explains, “but with a flapping wing, the wing is no longer fixed and is in a constant state of stress.”

“This state of constant, high magnitude stress leads to a very short fatigue life for the structure,” the post concludes.

Despite these limiting factors, the ERAU post also notes that “we have successfully built multiple ornithopters.” Examples cited include a vehicle built by engineers at  Harvard University  known as the  RoboBee , a  second  created at  University of Toronto’s Aerospace Project , and an untold number of less public efforts by what the ERAU post describes as “governments/military programs all over the world.”

By all accounts, building a vehicle similar to the ones featured in  Dune  seems more or less technically feasible, but due to the design’s inherent limitations, the ERAU post concludes that “the attempt [by the Toronto team] to build a commercially available ornithopter was dropped, and there is little research in manned ornithopters.”

Can We Make Personal Shields like in Dune ?

Another device envisioned by Herbert is a personal shield used in hand-to-hand combat. Considering that the book was released two years before the premiere of the original Star Trek television show, the similarity in concept between the personal shields of  Dune  and those used to protect spacecraft in Gene Roddenberry’s fictional universe is hard to miss. Nonetheless, these devices are used throughout Herbert’s book, as well as all of the on-screen adaptations, leading  The Debrief  to try to find out if such a device is even possible to design.

To start, the fictional science behind these shields is something Herbert called a  Holzman Effect , which the author himself  described  as “the negative repelling effect of a shield generator.” In real science, there is no such force. In fact,  a 2020 post on Medium  asking how such a force field might be constructed noted that “of the four forces of the universe — gravity, electromagnetism, and the strong and weak nuclear force — none seem to allow for the existence of a force field.”

Later in that same post, the author arrived at the idea of using superheated plasma, the most common state of matter in the universe, to create a shield around whatever it is you are trying to protect, be it a person, a spaceship, a city, or even an entire planet.

“A sheet of plasma heated to high temperature and power will vaporize objects with which it comes into contact,” the post explains. “And not only can it help stop bullets and everyday matter, but we already have evidence that plasma can stop radiation as well.”

Famed scientist Michio Kaku made a similar observation back in 2008 when he  penned a piece  for the Wall Street Journal looking into, among other sci-fi ideas, force fields. 

In that article, Kaku proposed a three-layer force field concept for a spaceship, including an outer layer of superheated plasma, a middle layer of thousands of lasers designed to vaporize any objects that make it through the plasma layer, and finally, a carbon nanotube layer only an atom thick that he says offers more strength than steel.

Of course, the idea of putting such a shield around a spaceship or even a planet may be theoretically feasible for Kaku and others. Still, as of November 2021, no one has publicly proposed a scientifically viable concept for the personal shields used by the fighters in  Dune .

Side note:   Dune’s  personal shields are said to repel fast-moving objects, while slower moving objects can penetrate their protective layer. Oddly, this is not dissimilar to how the angle and velocity of objects colliding with the Earth’s atmosphere determines whether or not they will slip through safely or bounce back into space. Given the dawn of human space exploration that was unfolding all around Herbert when he was penning the original  Dune  novels, is it possible that this atmospheric effect influenced the concept of his world’s personal shields?

Are Sound Weapons Real?

In the 1984 film adaptation, the hero Paul Atreides teaches the Fremen of Arrakis how to use a device referred to as a “weirding module,” which amplifies sound to create a destructive wave that can blast through both bone and stone. Surprisingly for fans of that film ( yes, we exist ), this technology was not in the original novel but was added by the film’s director David Lynch.

“The one bit of tech in the films that was created from whole cloth, and which appeared in the 1984 film, were the weirding modules,” Grazier told  The Debrief , “a form of sonic directed energy weapons that appeared nowhere else.”

“Frank Herbert created a Duniverse in which readers could buy into the notion that civilization had fallen into feudalism where the primary mode of warfare was hand-to-hand combat,” added Grazier, “and that included a form of martial arts called the Weirding Way. Director David Lynch candidly said that he didn’t want his film to be “Kung Fu on sand dunes,” thus was born the weirding module sonic weapons.”

This novel solution employed by Lynch made for a unique weapon that some feel was one of the stand out elements of the original film. However, as Grazier also told  The Debrief , “fans of the books found [Lynch’s redefinition of The Weirding Way] to be a  weird  decision.”

In the real world, sound weapons exist, even if they are not used in the same way or produce the same results as Lynch’s redesigned weirding modules.

For instance, as regular readers of  The Debrief  are likely aware, the United States  has reported  numerous cases of foreign diplomats and service personnel becoming sick when stationed overseas. Often termed “Havana Syndrome,” due to early reports of the phenomena afflicting diplomats serving in the Cuban capital, most estimates peg ultrasonic weapons as the likeliest source of these debilitating attacks. Of course, these proposed sonic weapons don’t shatter stone walls or blast people into bits like the weirding modules featured in the 1984 film. However, if they are indeed the origin of the debilitating symptoms  still being reported  by diplomatic personnel, they are highly effective weapons.

Long Range Acoustic Devices (LRADs), more commonly known as “ Sound Cannons ,” have been employed by police and military forces in crowd control situations. These devices emit “very loud sounds over long distances” but fall short of damaging physical material like Lynch’s weirding modules. However, in September 2021, the  Academy of Doctors of Audiology  posted a  letter on their website  decrying the use of sound cannons for the actual types of permanent damage they may indeed inflict.

“Long Range Acoustic Devices (LRADs) may be used as close range sonic weapons against U.S. citizens as a form of non-lethal crowd control and dispersion,” the post states. “These sonic weapons are capable of inflicting severe, debilitating, permanent harm on U.S. citizens in the form of irreversible hearing loss, tinnitus, vestibular dysfunction, and barotrauma.”

Separately, a 2018 scientific paper  looked into the concept  of using ultrasonic vibrations to crush granite, but even that study noted how “the new technique of using ultrasonic vibration to break hard rock is still in the experimental stage.” That same paper does, however, note with more optimism that the nascent technology “has significant potential for improving the efficiency of hard rock crushing.”

Given the current application of ultrasound for overt crowd control, its possible use in covert actions against overseas diplomats, and the relatively new research into using ultrasonic waves to crush rocks, it may simply be a matter of time before someone constructs a weapon that combines all these technologies into one device. Now that will be weird.

A Real-Life Stillsuit?

“A stillsuit is a full-body suit worn by the Fremen (and others) on the hostile desert planet Arrakis,” Grazier explained. “The stillsuit keeps the wearer cool and processes sweat, urine, and feces, to reclaim drinkable water such that the wearer ‘doesn’t lose more than a thimbleful of water’ each day.”

Grazier further explained how “in the introduction of  The Science of Dune , I wrote that, by design or accident, Herbert provided just the barest of hints on how the technology of the Duniverse functioned.” Grazier believes this approach helped greatly reduce potential criticism of the author’s outlandish ideas, whether intentional or not.

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For example, he notes that “the stillsuit is one of the few instances where Herbert describes the workings of the technology that inhabits his world and, in so doing, he creates the kinds of contradictions that, today, would get him dragged on Twitter the day after the film’s release.”

This overall lack of stillsuit viability is highlighted in  another post on the ERAU website , where the outfit’s three main component technologies and their respective feasibility is analyzed.

First, according to Herbert, the suit possesses the ability to recapture moisture lost through sweat, urine, and other bodily functions. Such technology, the ERAU post explains, does already exist, but with some critical limitations, namely the size of equipment needed to recapture and filter the wastewater and return it to drinkability.

“[The] space shuttle Endeavour [carried] two refrigerator-sized racks packed with a distiller and an assortment of filters designed to process astronauts’ urine and sweat into clean drinking water,” the post explains. “This right here is the first metaphorical nail in the coffin for our beloved stillsuits because there is simply no way to cram two refrigerator-sized racks of technology into a suit that somebody could wear.” 

However, the post’s author concedes, the progression of human technology has repeatedly demonstrated that given enough time, things like computers can and often do shrink from room-sized machines down to tiny processors like those found inside your phone.

Unfortunately, this same size issue makes the second function of the stillsuit, salt reclamation, also out of the reach of current human tech. That’s mainly because the only truly effective means to achieve this salt reclamation is via reverse osmosis. And like the water reclamation and filtration process, proven methods of reverse osmosis involve massive pieces of equipment that would be impossible to replicate at such a small scale.

The final touted benefit of the stillsuit is the ability to keep its wearer cool in the hot desert sun. Exactly how this is accomplished is left unexplained by Herbert. Modern-day space suits used by human astronauts often include built-in cooling systems. Still, those require sizable powered refrigeration systems and toxic chemicals that don’t seem to be present in the novel, much less in the compact sizes needed.

Ultimately, it appears that the technology for each of the features of the stillsuit exists, but as of 2021, limitations on size place assembling one of these magical desert survival outfits well outside of humanity’s current capabilities.

Can We Actually Fold Space like in Dune ?

To maintain its authority across star systems, the Imperium employs guild navigators. These almost superhuman beings use the spice to navigate the massive ‘heighliner” spaceships. Herbert calls this hybrid of technology and consciousness “folding space.”

“We know Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity that there is a “fabric to the space-time continuum: one that is non-uniform and will bend or stretch in the presence of a gravitational field,” Grazier explained to  The Debrief . “I just view the folding of space [in  Dune ] to achieve FTL travel as a practical application of General Relativity.”

The Debrief  has covered a  wide array  of  advanced propulsion concepts  throughout the last year, including things like  Warp Drives  that often rely on the Einsteinian principles of Special Relativity to travel at faster than light speeds. As of 2021, those concepts are all  still theoretical , but unlike the method used by the navigators of Dune, none require a mind-matter connection to steer their advanced FTL drives.

Combining more esoteric and unproven concepts like  Remote Viewing  (using one’s mind to theoretically view a distant location) with the real world science of quantum superposition (the unique ability of sub-atomic particles to exist in two places at once) may be generations away from any practical application, if at all. It more likely may indeed require some ‘magical’ ingredient like Herbert’s spice to actually function. Conversely, given that space, time and consciousness are mysteries that  at least some scientists feel  may all be interlinked, it is still a slight possibility that the human mind may end up being a pivotal component to conquering the universe after all. Either that or  Herbert was just talking about shrooms .

The Spice Must Flow…

To truly achieve a better understanding of the technology and science touched on by Frank Herbert, as well as those who have adapted his work,  The Science of Dune  is beyond required reading. Throughout that book, which Grazier edited, each of the technologies discussed here, plus many, many more, are broken down by actual scientists and engineers, offering the reader all sorts of compelling insights into how real or unreal those ideas may or may not be.

In the end, at least as far as Grazier is concerned, it isn’t the science or technology of  Dune  that matters as much as the human drama that is the book’s proper focus. And, he adds, regardless of the viability of any of the man’s proposed technologies, it is the everyday choices made by Frank Herbert during his lifetime that has left us all with the gift of his words, as well as his vision.

“He tried his hand at writing pulp fiction,” said Grazier, “decided he enjoyed it and ended up writing a science fiction and literary masterpiece.”

Follow and connect with author Christopher Plain on Twitter: @plain_fiction

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Denis Villeneuve has brought Frank Herbert’s Dune universe to life in spectacular fashion, showing off a sci-fi future that might not actually be as unrealistic as it seems. Herbert’s world trades heavily in prophecy and the supernatural as well as in spaceships and advanced technology, creating a future that feels both scientifically advanced and inescapably fantastical. Obviously, not everything in Dune is feasible within the bounds of what humans currently know about the universe, but some parts of the sci-fi universe may be well within the realm of eventual possibility.

The story of Dune starts in the year 10,191 A.G. (After Guild). The creation of the Spacing Guild—which is what leads to the establishment of a new galactic calendar in the Dune timeline —takes place about 10,000 years in the future. That sets the events of the film around the year 22,000 A.D., or roughly 20,000 years beyond the real world. The massive time jump comes with a slew of futuristic developments, ranging from interstellar travel and personal energy shields to new levels of awakened human consciousness.

Related:  Every Major Character Death In Dune, Explained

Because Dune is set so far in the future, it’s impossible to gauge the realism of its sci-fi universe with perfect accuracy. However, Herbert tried to ground most of his story in some level of real science, and there are plenty of existing theories of what’s hypothetically possible for humans to achieve in terms of science and technology. Here’s how realistic Dune’s story and sci-fi world actually is.

How Realistic Is Dune’s Sci-Fi Technology?

In terms of its future tech, Dune is pretty similar to many other stalwarts in the sci-fi genre. That’s largely because Dune created or popularized many of the tropes that have come to dominate the genre in the decades since. There are spaceships of various sizes, planetary-bound craft of advanced speed and mobility, laser guns (though rarely used), energy shields, and all manner of levitating chairs, lamps, and other mundane objects. In the books, most of the futuristic technology in Dune is explained through a scientific principle called the Holtzman Effect – a relatively vague theory of the relationships between subatomic particles. The Holtzman effect is used in the Dune book franchise to justify how all the suspenser tech works, which causes all the floating objects to function as they do. It’s also the basis of the personal body shields that deflect high-velocity attacks but are susceptible to slow-moving objects.

Because the Holtzman Effect is not a real scientific principle, and because it’s pretty loosely defined in Herbert’s own books, it’s tough to say how realistic the technology created by it actually is. However, much of the rest of Dune’s tech—such as the ornithopters, the stillsuits’ water recycling, the desert survival equipment of the Fremen, and most of the weapons used by Dune’s House Atreides and House Harkonnen —are all pretty firmly within the realm of possibility, given a few thousand years of scientific advancement. Because all supercomputers and advanced AI were wiped out by humanity prior to the events of Dune , most of the day-to-day technology seen in the movie is relatively realistic by science-fiction standards. And even some of the more rudimentary tech caused by the Holtzman Effect, like the body shields and the suspensor lamps, are probably feasible given the exponential rise in scientific advancement humanity has seen over the past several decades.

How Realistic Is Dune’s Space Travel?

Like many science fiction franchises, Dune employs a form of faster-than-light travel to transport its characters from one corner of the galaxy to the other. Dune is similar to Star Wars in the effect of its space travel, but it differs notably from George Lucas’ universe in its methods. As described in both Herbert’s novel and Villeneuve’s movie, the Spacing Guild of Dune utilizes the Holtzman Effect to “fold” space-time, allowing great galactic distances to be traversed in nearly no time at all because of the compression. A safe course of travel is then plotted through this folded space-time by the Guild Navigators; humans who are fully immersed in tanks of Melange gas and inundated with heavy doses of the spice in order to achieve a high level of prescience. As a result of their severe spice usage, Guild Navigators mutate into hideously deformed creatures, barely resembling their former human state.

Related:  Dune: Why Paul Keeps Seeing The Desert Mouse (& What It Means)

The spice-related portion of Dune’s space travel is obviously unrealistic because it relies on a fictional drug that induces supernatural future-sight. The idea of folding space-time, however, could be seen as feasible within the contemporary theories of general and special relativity. Space-time distortion is a real, observable phenomenon, and within the ideas posited by Einstein and his successors, a forced compression of time and space to make interstellar travel quicker is theoretically possible. The operative word there is theoretical, however, as such leaps forward in science are still purely speculative and highly debated.

How Realistic Are Dune’s Supernatural Powers?

In addition to the various pieces of sci-fi technology present in Dune , there’s another layer of futurism in the more spiritual and supernatural elements of the story. Paul’s dreams and visions in Dune are the most prominent manifestation of this in Villeneuve’s film, but there are many other instances of superhuman abilities explored in detail in Herbert’s original novel. In Dune , some humans are able to read virtually imperceptible changes in emotion and control others with just their voice, while others possess logical and mathematical capabilities equal to those of advanced computers. These superior powers are primarily explained by advanced training that starts at birth and a general evolution of humanity as a species – both of which make the advanced abilities displayed in Dune at least somewhat believable.

Given thousands and thousands of years of carefully cultivated human evolution, it’s not out of the question to think that enhanced perception and mental capabilities could arise, as they do in Dune character groups like the Mentats and the Bene Gesserits. Paul’s future-sight, however, is a bit less plausible. His powers are tied to the spice—again, an entirely fictional substance—as well as to larger prophecies that aren’t fully explained within the story of Dune . However, there are some real-world theories that the use of naturally occurring psychedelic substances, like magic mushrooms, played a big part in the development of the human brain in earlier subspecies. Because so much of the human mind is believed to be untapped, there is some unknown space for Dune to play with in terms of plausibility.

How Realistic Is Dune’s Universe?

Perhaps the most immediately realistic aspect of Dune’s future is the general organization of its universe. There are no sentient aliens in Herbert’s world, and the political structure of the galaxy is almost medieval in its stark simplicity. The Dune Imperium is ruled by an Emperor , who wields supreme power over the universe. That power is divided up further among the great houses—longstanding families entrusted with regional control and relatively high levels of independence from the core Imperium. There are also notable religious factions like the Bene Gesserits, who occupy similar roles to clergy in the real world. The role of spice also parallels that of Earth's own most valuable commodities, such as oil or rare minerals necessary for technology, which, like spice, are frequently fought over. Overall, Dune is a story more interested in patterns of human behaviors than in larger questions of technological impact, which is why Herbert kept the social and political aspects of his universe very close in structure to modern-day Earth.

Next:  Everything We Know About Dune Part 2

• SR Originals

Dune is an epic sci-fi masterpiece

Denis Villeneuve’s space opera is as giddily entertaining as the original Star Wars .

Dune ’s reputation precedes it.

Frank Herbert’s novel is one of the most influential works of science fiction — and one of the most unadaptable, the kind of uniquely sprawling epic that has broken many great filmmakers, from Alejandro Jodorowsky to David Lynch .

Yet, Denis Villeneuve’s epic space opera finally offers Dune the adaptation it always deserved, preserving the novel’s complex lore — as well as its political threads — and delivering a narrative as giddily entertaining as the original Star Wars .

Yes, the rumors are true: This is only half the story laid out by Herbert’s novel. But against all odds, Denis Villeneuve made a film that feels complete, even as it had this writer salivating for Part Two as soon as the credits rolled.

For those unfamiliar with the books, Dune is set in the far, far future, when the known universe is ruled by a feudal-like system of great houses. They are led by an all-powerful emperor whose power depends on the “spice melange.” This naturally produced narcotic enables everything from faster-than-light travel to the prolonging of lives for the rich and powerful to extraordinary mental powers for a select few. The only place in the universe this psychotropic spice is harvested is the inhospitable planet Arrakis, where House Atreides has been sent under orders from the Emperor to serve as the planet's stewards.

Broadly, Dune follows Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), heir to House Atreides and son of Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac), who sees his family attacked by treacherous enemies and is forced to wander Arrakis in order to survive. The Fremen, indigenous inhabitants of Arrakis, speak of an ancient prophecy waiting to be fulfilled, and Paul learns his destiny is amid the planet’s unwelcoming, unforgiving sand dunes.

Timothée Chalamet and Rebecca Ferguson in Dune.

The best compliment one can give Dune is that it doesn't feel like a two-and-a-half-hour epic, though it certainly looks like one. Villeneuve, whose visual sensibilities have been formidably established by serious-minded sci-fi epics like Arrival and Blade Runner 2049 , brings the same weight and solemnity to this film’s pacing and visuals. Dune is a dense, at times inaccessible story with long stretches of silence and myriad establishing shots of the desert; its story unfolds meticulously and without haste.

But such an approach is necessary to convey the grand sense of scale in Dune , not to mention the intricate political, cultural, religious, ecological, and social systems interconnecting within Herbert’s story.

The unique tone of Dune serves another purpose, as the film seeks to establish itself as a new franchise player in the crowded fantasy sphere. As if to position the film as a new Game of Thrones or Lord of the Rings , Villeneuve spends much of the runtime enticing his audience to invest in this strange new world, luxuriating in rich details and moving the story through cultures and locations that all feel marvelously distinct from one another.

Zendaya and Timothée Chalamet in Dune.

With magnificent costumes and sets that follow geometric designs in ways both futuristic and curiously ancient, Villeneuve’s Dune is impressively unique in its world-building. More than mere WWII-era fighter jets in space, the film turns spaceships, for example, into unusually round edifices that could have been drawn from an Apple designer’s sketchbook. And remember when Rogue One introduced the largest number of planets ever seen in a Star Wars movie, yet they all felt identical save for different climates? Dune doesn't have that problem.

From Arrakis to Caladan to Giedi Prime, each new location's climate informs everything about its civilizations, as architecture, color palettes, and set decor all foreground the filmmakers’ dazzling imagination. Giedi Prime appears born of an H. R. Giger nightmare, while the hellish deserts of Arrakis inform not only the kinds of vehicles and wardrobes used to survive constant sand storms and scorching heat but also the ways its inhabitants behave and what customs they follow.

There is certainly something to be said about the way Dune (both the movie and the book) appropriates Arab and Islamic culture, history, and symbolism to tell the story of Paul, who belongs to neither culture, but the film at least draws a clear, distinct line between how the Fremen act and the unbowed, unbent, unbroken nature of Arrakis itself, showcasing a crucial nuance within the worlds it depicts.

Josh Brolin and Oscar Isaac in Dune.

Of course, one cannot write about Dune and not mention its iconic sandworms; this film does them justice. These enormous beasts are treated more like the shark in Jaws , used sparingly but effectively in order to heighten a sense of dread and tension. The excellent sound design and cinematography make small tremblings in the sand evoke those cups of water rippling in Jurassic Park . Hans Zimmer delivers yet another rousing score that mixes grandiose and operatic sounds with a surprising rock style, lending Dune a unique sonic palette to match its visuals.

Even with an ensemble cast as large and impressive as the one on display in this film, Dune finds the time to give every character screen time, whether it's Oscar Isaac's stoic Duke, Stellan Skarsgård's genuinely scary Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, or Rebecca Ferguson's enigmatic and remorseful Lady Jessica.

Without a doubt, however, this movie belongs to Jason Momoa’s intrepid Duncan Idaho and Timothée Chalamet's soldiering Paul. Momoa's Duncan showcases the terrifying battle strength of Khal Drogo, though Duncan is also roguish and playful in the vein of Han Solo. He delights himself by fighting like a demon, yet this version of the character is also a fun, warm presence whose close bond with Paul is grounded in sincere affection.

Josh Brolin and Timothée Chalamet in Dune.

Meanwhile, Chalamet gives arguably the best performance of his young career as Paul . Subtle and subdued, maintaining a stoic and regal demeanor before strangers but quietly breaking down in front of those he trusts, this is a young man who understands the burden of being a chosen one. He knows the path of his hero's journey will be paved in the blood of others. Indeed, Dune interrogates the idea of a “messiah” in a way no other genre movie of this scale has, focusing less on the actual person than on the concept of an "anointed one" and what belief in such a figure can do to a group of people.

Villeneuve made a film that tells a complete story, though it ends on a cliffhanger that can be taken as an invitation to riot, should Part Two fail to materialize. This is not, however, an Avengers: Infinity War -style ending , closing out during a second act. Instead, Dune feels more like The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring , a story that clearly had more to give but still delivered a satisfying conclusion to its first chapter.

We would be missing out on plenty if Part Two never comes to be, but Part One is still a saga worth watching and rewatching. More than anything, Dune feels like the start of a story that will soon become the stuff of sci-fi filmmaking legend.

Dune premiered September 3 at the Venice Film Festival.

Dune arrives in theaters and on HBO Max on October 22, 2021.

This article was originally published on Sep. 3, 2021

• Science Fiction

The Sietches Of Dune, Explained

Quick links, the political economy of dune, what is a sietch in dune, sietches: locations and functions.

Frank Herbert's science-fiction novel Dune boasts incredible world-building, and Denis Villeneuve's 2021 movie adaptation lives up to his vision. Dune: Part One and Part Two meticulously create a backdrop where the environment plays a crucial role in the story's events. The transition of Herbert's literary world-building to the visual medium is an example of excellence.

The Sietches of Arrakis stand out in the detailed setting; i.e., the interplanetary politics, the histories, the relocation to different worlds, and the economy of Dune . They come into prominence the minute House Atreides arrives to replace the Harkonnens in fief-complete on the desert planet. In Book 1, Dune, Baron Vladimir Harkonnen, his Mentat-Assassin Piter de Vries, and his nephew Feyd-Rautha discuss the trap that they and the Padishah Emperor have set for the Atreides on Dune. The Fremen, who are native to the desert planet, inevitably come up — as do their communities, the Sietches.

Dune: Salusa Secundus, Explained

From the viewpoint of political economy, the workings of the galactic empire are dictated by the relationship between the Corrino Imperium seated at Kaitain , and the forces of the Imperium. An abominable feudal structure flourishes, because alliances between the Emperor and the Great Houses of the Landsraad shape it. At the outset of the story, House Harkonnen ravaged Arrakis in quasi-fief under a CHOAM company contract. For 80 years, they mined the Spice Melange, which is the single most important commodity in Dune. Often called the Spice, the powerful substance is only found on Arrakis.

The Harkonnens resorted to brutal policies to "tame" the desert and its denizens. Their systemic dehumanization of the Fremen is evident in language such as "Fremen scum" and "Mongrel Fremen." Such terms serve as an important precursor to moral exclusion. Arrakis belongs to the Fremen, and their roots run deep in the lands that the Harkonnens profit from. The Baron likes to believe that his House managed to push whatever remains of the Fremen along the desert's edge with their sophisticated military and technological abilities. But the truth is, that they failed to quash them or reduce their numbers.

The major themes of Dune are colonialism and anti-colonialism, and, since it is primarily set on the desert planet of Arrakis , native resistance. The opening sequence of Villeneuve's 2021 adaptation shines a light on the Fremen and their resistance. Zendaya's character, the desert warrior Chani, speaks:

My Planet Arrakis is so beautiful when the sun is low. Rolling over the sands, you can see spice in the air. At nightfall, the spice harvesters land. [...] They ravage our lands in front of our eyes. Their cruelty to my people is all I've known. These outsiders, the Harkonnens, came long before I was born. [...] Our warriors couldn't free Arrakis from the Harkonnens, but one day, by Imperial decree, they were gone.

In Herbert's Dune , Dr. Yueh, the betrayer of Duke Leto, tells Paul that the Arrakeen population is generally divided into two: the people of the Graben, the Sink, and the Pan; and then the Fremen group. There's a certain degree of intermarriage between the two:

"The women of Pan and sink villages prefer Fremen husbands; their men prefer Fremen wives."

Paul's Father, Duke Leto Atreides, walks on to Arrakis despite feeling the trap. He aims to counter the Emperor's threat by appeasing the Fremen. He has sent Duncan Idaho on a mission to negotiate with the Fremen. Duncan lives with them for four weeks in the desert in a community called a Sietch.

The word Sietch means "place of assembly in time of danger." Over time, it grew to be used for the dwellings of the Fremen tribal communities. Stilgar is the leader (Naib) of the Sietch Tabr where Idaho stays while gambling on behalf of the Duke. When the Duke asks how the Sietches are hidden, Idaho simply says that they are underground and that Arrakis is full of caverns. Stilgar's Sietch houses 10,000 people. There are hundreds of such communities on Arrakis, meaning that the Fremen aren't a small population, but exist in millions.

Baron Harkonnen makes a bold claim, stating:

"There cannot be more than a handful of Fremen left after the Sardaukar pogrom and Rabban's oppression."

However, this is misleading. In Dune: Part One , the Old Mentat Thufir Hawat says that the Harkonnens had estimated that the total Fremen population was 50,000 in the whole of Arrakis.

Duncan Idaho is thoroughly impressed by the Fremen of Dune . They tried to kill him in the beginning, but he succeeded in befriending them. By Duncan's admission, he's never come so close to death, as he did while fighting the fierce warriors of the Fremen. Stilgar (Javier Bardem) asks Duke Leto to respect the territorial integrity of the Sietches of Dune:

I ask for this: do not seek our Sietches. Do not trespass in our lands. The desert was ours long before you came. So, come and dig your spice, but [...] leave the desert to the Fremen.

Leto agrees, promising Stilgar:

"Your Sietches will be yours forever."

The Sietches of Dune are located within the planet's mountains or outcrops. The Fremen take residence either in the natural caves in the ground, artificial caving systems, or both. The Fremen know the large network of tunnels and caves beneath the desert like the backs of their hands. The Fremen live together in the Sietches, and their dwellings are the centers of their internal economies. Sietch Tabr and a few more also have stunted worms for Water of Life rituals. They manufacture things such as the Paracompass, Sand Compactor, Stillsuit, and materials from Spice. Even small-scale farming takes place inside most Sietches.

The Sietches are communities that withstood brutalities under the Harkonnens, but ask to be left unbothered under the Atreides in Dune: Part One .

Based on the novel by Frank Herbert, Dune follows the story of Paul Atreides played by Timothée Chalamet, whose family take control of a planet that holds the key to faster than light travel, and certain mental powers. This futuristic fantasy world is rife with politics, religion, wars and betrayals, as empires and factions fight for control over the planet. 

Dune: Why Did The Emperor Send House Atreides To Arrakis?