Posted on 07/28/2015 11:20:36 AM PDT by Mellonkronos
[Now this would be really cool! Hope it pans out!]
'Impossible' rocket drive works and could get to Moon in four hours
The British designed EM Drive actually works and would dramatically speed up space travel, scientists have confirmed
By Sarah Knapton, Science Editor 6:04PM BST 28 Jul 2015
Interplanetary travel could be a step closer after scientists confirmed that an electromagnetic propulsion drive, which is fast enough to get to the Moon in four hours, actually works.
The EM Drive was developed by the British inventor Roger Shawyer nearly 15 years ago but was ridiculed at the time as being scientifically impossible.
It produces thrust by using solar power to generate multiple microwaves that move back and forth in an enclosed chamber. This means that until something fails or wears down, theoretically the engine could keep running forever without the need for rocket fuel.
The drive, which has been likened to Star Trek’s Impulse Drive, has left scientists scratching their heads because it defies one of the fundamental concepts of physics – the conservation of momentum – which states that if something is propelled forward, something must be pushed in the opposite direction.
However in recent years Nasa has confirmed that they believe it works and this week Martin Tajmar, a professor and chair for Space Systems at Dresden University of Technology in Germany also showed that it produces thrust.
The drive is capable of producing thrust several thousand times greater than a standard photon rocket and could get to Mars within 70 days or Pluto within 18 months. A trip to Alpha Centauri, which would take tens of thousands of years to reach right now, could be reached in just 100 years.
"Our test campaign cannot confirm or refute the claims of the EM Drive but intends to independently…
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
LUDUCROUS SPEED NOW!!
“It produces thrust by using solar power”
Doesn`t work at night at all.
Unmanned vehicle could handle constant 3+ g’s, but doubtful a human could and be worth anything once there.
lol.... not sure of the thrust needed to slow down enough to go into orbit around the moon...but I would assume it would be huge...with a load of time needed to decrease speed at a reasonable g force. But I believe someday we’ll have this technology and greater.
And its always dark in space. So obviously this thing won’t work.
Good luck, and thanks for all the fish.
The other ‘new’ approach is to use the solar wind. It produces a very little acceleration, but that acceleration continues to build up the velocity with time, to very high values, because there is no friction and air drag in space.
Homina, Homina...
Yep, hope they got good brakes. Or they could just us parachute ... right?
“The problem is slowing down.”
Good point. By my rough math you would be travelling at about 50 million miles an hour by the time you reach Alpha Centauri 100 years from now.
You’d barely have time to take a picture out the window.
Yeah?
“The problem is slowing down.”
The article hints that there is no conservation of momentum, so start/stop acceleration may not be a problem.
I’ve read about this before. I was unaware that they’d managed to get it to produce any large effects. If so, that’s bloody awesome. I doubt something like this can be used to escape the earth’s gravity well, but once out there, it opens up some interesting possibilities. Inter-solar exploration would be greatly enhanced if we had propulsive systems in our probes as well.
Improbability fields are inherently dangerous, as the more improbable a given thing is, the more likely it is to actually occur in the field. Bistromathematics is a great improvement. Can't wait to go see Disaster Area!
>>> And its always dark in space. So obviously this thing won’t work. <<<
Obviously. When it’s dark you need a wind generator.
Problem solved.
I always thought that Transparent Aluminum was just another way of saying Aluminum Oxide. ;-)
We can’t build it, not only was it developed by an oppressive white guy, but it will also make muslims feel bad about their contributions to math and science
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