Related papers: AB Space Engine
The collisionless plasmas in space and astrophysical environments are intrinsically multiscale in nature, behaving as conducting fluids at macroscales and kinetically at microscales comparable to ion- and/or electron-gyroradii. A…
This experimental study investigates a new technique to keep a satellite in orbit utilizing electrodynamics. The technique consists of establishing a charge on a satellite such that the body's motion through a planetary magnetic field…
Near-space, which covers altitudes from 20 to 100 kilometers, has been receiving more and more attention because of its special strategic value. Airships and high-altitude balloons are two common types of low-speed vehicles that operate in…
A charged tether or wire experiences Coulomb drag when inserted into flowing plasma. In the solar wind the Coulomb drag can be utilised as efficient propellantless interplanetary propulsion as the electric solar wind sail (electric sail,…
Gauging the benefits of hypothetical gravity control propulsion is difficult, but addressable. The major challenge is that such breakthroughs are still only notional concepts rather than being specific methods from which performance can be…
Efficient energy transfer from electromagnetic waves to ions has been demanded to control laboratory plasmas for various applications and could be useful to understand the nature of space and astrophysical plasmas. However, there exists a…
We present a novel concept to impart a continuous thrust to an Earth threatening asteroid from a hovering spacecraft without need for physical attachment nor gravitational interaction with the asteroid. The concept involves an ion thruster…
This article proposes a novel system concept named universal wireless power transfer, in which power can be wirelessly transferred between different entities (e.g. vehicles, robots, homes, grid facilities, consumer electronic devices, etc.)…
A decade ago, non-radiative wireless power transmission re-emerged as a promising alternative to deliver electrical power to devices where a physical wiring proved to be unfeasible. However, existing approaches are neither scalable nor…
A QED-based mechanism, breaking translational invariance of the vacuum at sufficiently small distance scales, is suggested as an explanation for the vacuum energy pressure that accelerates the universe. Very-small-scale virtual vacuum…
A concept of SUb-atmospheric Radio-frequency Engine (SURE) designed for near space environment is reported. The antenna wrapping quartz tube consists of two solenoid coils with variable separation distance, and is driven by radio-frequency…
A "space drive" is a hypothetical device that generates a propulsive force in free space using an input of power without the need for a reaction mass. Any device that generates photons (e.g., a laser) would qualify as a propellantless…
We present a design concept for a space engine that can continuously remove the orbit debris by using the debris as a propellant. Space robotic cleaner is adopted to capture the targeting debris and to transfer them into the engine. Debris…
The efficiencies of light-harvesting complexes in biological systems can be much higher than the current efficiencies of artificial solar cells. In this paper, we therefore propose and analyse an energy transport mechanism which employs…
The Breakthrough Starshot project aims to send a tiny 2 gram spacecraft to Proxima Centauri propelled by a light sail and powerful Earth-based lasers. We provide two derivations of the laser energy required to propel the spacecraft and give…
The manuscript deals with electron acceleration by a laser pulse in a plasma with a static uniform magnetic field $B_*$. The laser pulse propagates perpendicular to the magnetic field lines with the polarization chosen such that…
Interstellar transport is an object of interest in many sci-fi stories. In history a lot of sci-fi predictions have turned into reality, such as communications satellites, deep-sea submarines and journies to the moon. In this work we study…
This paper studies a new unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)-enabled wireless power transfer (WPT) system, where a UAV-mounted mobile energy transmitter (ET) is dispatched to deliver wireless energy to a set of on-ground energy receivers (ERs).…
Atmosphere-breathing electric propulsion (ABEP) is a promising technology for long-term orbit maintenance in very-low-Earth orbit. The intake device plays a crucial role in capturing and supplying propellant, and its capture efficiency is a…
The creation and design of a plasma thruster are considered using a rotating cylindrical plasma flow in crossed magnetic fields. The thruster scheme uses this plasma guided by a permanent, radial and a time-dependent axial magnetic field.…