Editing 2321: Low-Background Metal

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The number of shipwrecks of that age that can be found and successfully salvaged for metal is quite small, which puts this material in short supply. Megan mentions that they have only enough for a single trip.  The team realizes (apparently at [[Black Hat]]'s suggestion), that a solution is to use their single trip to take modern military hardware back to the era of the {{w|Roman Empire}} and use it to sink multiple ships.  This would both provide for many more shipwrecks to salvage, and give the team a good idea of where those wrecks were, when they returned to modern times. They could also specifically target ships that were in waters that are well-suited for salvage operations.
 
The number of shipwrecks of that age that can be found and successfully salvaged for metal is quite small, which puts this material in short supply. Megan mentions that they have only enough for a single trip.  The team realizes (apparently at [[Black Hat]]'s suggestion), that a solution is to use their single trip to take modern military hardware back to the era of the {{w|Roman Empire}} and use it to sink multiple ships.  This would both provide for many more shipwrecks to salvage, and give the team a good idea of where those wrecks were, when they returned to modern times. They could also specifically target ships that were in waters that are well-suited for salvage operations.
  
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However, while this might be a pragmatic solution, going back in time to sink ships and murder the occupants doesn't seem like a particularly morally acceptable solution,{{Citation needed}} not to mention opening up potential {{w|time travel paradoxes}} such as what if one of the ship occupants killed was an ancestor to one of the protagonists? If this were a real scenario, there would probably be less drastic solutions available, such as purchasing quantities of lead from the time (would need to convincingly impersonate a local and have something that could be used as currency) and dropping them in the ocean from a (rented) non-destroyed ship, which as a bonus eliminates the need to extract it from the charred remains of a ship later.
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However, while this might be a pragmatic solution, going back in time to sink ships and murder the occupants doesn't seem like a particularly morally acceptable solution{{Citation needed}}, not to mention opening up potential {{w|time travel paradoxes}} such as what if one of the ship occupants killed was an ancestor to one of the protagonists? If this were a real scenario, there would probably be less drastic solutions available, such as purchasing quantities of lead from the time (would need to convincingly impersonate a local and have something that could be used as currency) and dropping them in the ocean from a (rented) non-destroyed ship, which as a bonus eliminates the need to extract it from the charred remains of a ship later.
  
 
Using time travel to retrieve items from the past that are not available in the present is a frequent trope in time travel-related media. Frequently, it is done with the goal of {{tvtropes|TimeTravelForFunAndProfit|making money}}, but other purposes are used as well. In the Star Trek movie {{w|Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home|The Voyage Home}}, time travel is used to retrieve whales and transport them to the present. In the book {{w|Timeline (novel)|Timeline}}, time travel is used to record historical events for entertainment purposes. In the movie {{w|Avengers: Endgame}}, time travel is used to retrieve minerals important to a future plan. In the movie {{w|Back to the Future(film)|Back to the Future}}, when Marty tells Doc that the time machine runs on plutonium, Doc exclaims, "I'm sure that in 1985, plutonium is available at every corner drug store, but in 1955, it's a little hard to come by" (from {{w|Back to the Future|this transcript}}).
 
Using time travel to retrieve items from the past that are not available in the present is a frequent trope in time travel-related media. Frequently, it is done with the goal of {{tvtropes|TimeTravelForFunAndProfit|making money}}, but other purposes are used as well. In the Star Trek movie {{w|Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home|The Voyage Home}}, time travel is used to retrieve whales and transport them to the present. In the book {{w|Timeline (novel)|Timeline}}, time travel is used to record historical events for entertainment purposes. In the movie {{w|Avengers: Endgame}}, time travel is used to retrieve minerals important to a future plan. In the movie {{w|Back to the Future(film)|Back to the Future}}, when Marty tells Doc that the time machine runs on plutonium, Doc exclaims, "I'm sure that in 1985, plutonium is available at every corner drug store, but in 1955, it's a little hard to come by" (from {{w|Back to the Future|this transcript}}).

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