Posted on 06/27/2005 4:44:21 PM PDT by Arkie2
Ion Thrusters Propel NASA into Future
NASA scientists are developing a new ion-propulsion system that could enable spacecraft to reach unheard-of speeds and undertake long-term explorations of planets in the outer solar system.
Dubbed "Herakles," the system would use an ion beam produced from xenon gas to propel the craft to speeds of 200,000 mph, 10 times faster than the top speed of the space shuttle. Because the new technology is much more efficient than conventional propulsion systems, the craft will be able to carry heavier, more-sophisticated scientific equipment.
The propulsion system is being developed through the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's Prometheus Nuclear Systems and Technology program, and by engineers at the Glenn Research Center in Ohio and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada Flintridge, Calif.
A Prometheus craft would be launched by conventional chemical rockets, but once in space, it would produce thrust by extracting ions from the xenon and expelling them into space. Although the thrusting begins slowly, the speed constantly increases over time.
The new system would make the moon, which is about 239,000 miles away from Earth, a short trip.
The craft would be powered by an onboard nuclear reactor.
The first ion thruster was installed on Deep Space 1, which was launched in 1998 and conducted a flyby of comet Borrelly. That system relied on solar energy, which loses power as the craft moves away from the sun.
Herakles and the other elements of a Prometheus craft are scheduled for advanced flight development in 2006.
This sounds like a real blast to ride. One boom and your gone for good.
The acceleration from these engines is very slow. It's been likened to the pressure of a piece of paper held in your hand. There's nothing neck snapping about getting up to speed but the engine has the ability to accelerate for weeks at a time.
Nuclear reactors don't "go boom". The worst that could happen is a loss of coolant, and the reactor melting, which, in outer space, does zip harm, except that the spacecraft payload is not delivered.
HerAnkles?
Just turn it around and thrust in the opposite direction. There's no need for sudden stops in space!
Well, you just killed it right there. Wait till the anti-nuke kooks hear about this one....
This could help us get to the outter planets faster than we can now. As the previous poster said, it's a very gentle acceleration, a few grams of force. But the force keeps on gradually accelerating the craft for months and then years. Eventually, we could get it going at a pretty impressive velocity.
With technology like this, we might...*might*... in the intermediate future be able to get an unmanned probe to our nearest neighbor star within one human's lifetime.
It's been a while since I did my calculations but, with our existing chemical rockets, to get an object.. any object.. to proxima centauri (literally on our doorstep, in cosmic terms) would take around 900 years.
Unless we can travel faster than light, all but a tiny speck of our own galaxy will remain forever off limits, unfortunately.
Can we launch HerAnkles to Zeta Reticuli?
She could take things from the ETs for for the common good.
GOD, NO! Please tell me hillery is NOT involved with this......PLEASE!
Ping
They're already working to kill it but we've used nuke reactors in space before. Most recently I think Sheila Jackson Lee called for an investigation into the dangers. Naturally, she's an expert.
Well now...that 200,000 mph sure sounds sweet...until you realize that it's 1/3348th of the speed of light!
Personally, I prefer the speed of Dark!
The other huge advantage of the combination of an ion drive and nuclear power is a huge increase (20 times as much) in power to run onboard systems. We're looking at a quantum leap in exploration with more powerful mapping radars, communications etc. This really is the engine of the future in space.
How long would it take to get to PC with this ion system?
I'm assuming that using the gravitational pull of planets would still be usefull for building speed more quickly.
snort!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.