Did the NASA “Venturer” run into a Hasslein Curve or something different?
The animated TV series utilizes a slightly different theme on this plot device though the end result is the same. The NASA “Venturer” was undergoing testing of Dr. Stanton’s Theory of Time Thrust when it encounters some kind of time warp in space and was subsequently (and unintentionally) propelled far into the future. The “Venturer” must also have had some kind of limited gravity drive system installed as apparently the spacecraft splashed down without the use of recovery parachutes or any kind of braking thrusters, and the main engine pack did not burn off during reentry (like most Mercury capsule engines did…). Given this visual data, we must assume that the astronauts were able to bring the “Venturer” in under powered flight, rather than simply entering the atmosphere in the traditional manner. Typically space capsules returning to Earth and splashdown use deceleration parachutes to slow their descent. Even using these parachutes, the capsules often strike the water surface at a
