Related papers: Fission Thrust sail as booster for high {\Delta}v …
Spin-polarized fusion has the potential to lower the radiation shielding and ignition requirements for fusion rockets while simultaneously increasing the fusion fuel burnup and provide better momentum coupling to a spacecraft. This…
The Magnetic Sail is a space propulsion system that utilizes the interaction between solar wind particles and an artificial dipole magnetic field generated by a spacecraft's coil to produce thrust without the need for additional plasma or…
The origin of fuel cell technology has a notable connection to the history of spaceflight, having been used in remarkable programs such as Gemini, Apollo and the Space Shuttle. With the constant growth of the electric propulsion technology…
Recent progress towards the non-fission ignition of thermonuclear micro-explosions raises the prospect for a revival of the nuclear bomb propulsion idea, both for the fast transport of large payloads within the solar system and the launch…
To develop a spacefaring civilization, humankind must develop technologies which enable safe, affordable and repeatable mobility through the solar system. One such technology is nuclear fusion propulsion which is at present under study…
Microwave propelled sails are a new class of spacecraft using photon acceleration. It is the only method of interstellar flight that has no physics issues. Laboratory demonstrations of basic features of beam-driven propulsion, flight,…
Consuming long-range interplanetary medium with fuel for driving plasma thrust is vital. Methods of capturing the space environment depending on its density and the ship velocity are indispensable issues to extract the space environment as…
In this paper we discuss the advantages and challenges of utilizing Fission Fragment Rocket Engines (FFREs) to dramatically reduce transit time in space travel, for example, traveling to Mars. We discuss methods to decrease the size and…
A program is outlined, and first results described, in which fully three-dimensional, time dependent simulations of hydrodynamic turbulence are used as a basis for theoretical investigation of the physics of turbulence in stars. The…
A technique by which a spacecraft can interact with flows of ionized gas in space (the solar wind or interstellar medium) to be accelerated to velocities greater than the wind velocity is explored. Inspired by the dynamic soaring maneuvers…
Electrical space thrusters show important advantages for applications in outer space compared to chemical thrusters, as they allow a longer mission lifetime with lower weight and propellant consumption. Mature technologies on the market…
Electric sails are propulsion systems that generate momentum via the deflection of stellar wind particles through electric forces. Here, we investigate the relative merits of electric sails and light sails driven by stellar radiation…
We examine the use of the interplanetary substance as a possible fuel for spacecraft plasma thrusters for interplanetary flights. The solar radiation is considered as an energy source for the ionization and the acceleration of particles of…
The main benefit of an interstellar mission is to carry out in-situ measurements within a target star system. To allow for extended in-situ measurements, the spacecraft needs to be decelerated. One of the currently most promising…
The main purpose of this work is to perform an analysis of realistic new trajectories for a robotic mission to Saturn's largest moon, Titan, in order to demonstrate the great advantages related to the Direct Fusion Drive (DFD). The DFD is a…
Large-payload deep space missions are impractical with current rocket propulsion technologies in use. Chemical thrusters yield a high thrust but low efficiency while ion thrusters are efficient but provide too little thrust for large…
A highly reflective sail provides a way to propel a spacecraft out of the solar system using solar radiation pressure. The closer the spacecraft is to the Sun when it starts its outward journey, the larger the radiation pressure and so the…
We consider the prototypical deuterium-tritium fusion reaction. At intermediate initial kinetic energies (in the keV regime), a major bottle-neck of this reaction is the Coulomb barrier between the nuclei, which is overcome by tunneling.…
A novel non-reactive thrust principle based on controlling the angular momentum of a material body is proposed. Theoretically, it is shown that asymmetric emission/absorption of low-energy particle fluxes with spin in a direction…
A propulsion concept in which a spacecraft interacts with high-velocity pellets and the interstellar medium is proposed. The pellets are slower than the spacecraft and are accelerated backwards as they are overtaken, imparting a forward…