Related papers: Radiation Hazard of Relativistic Interstellar Flig…
Radiation hazard on board of a relativistic rocket can be of internal and external origin. Because of its highest specific energy density, antimatter is considered to be the preferred rocket fuel for accelerating a multi-ton rocket up to…
Two technological problems must be solved before daring to interstellar flight: fuel and propulsion. The highest energy-density fuel is antimatter in its solid or liquid state and this fuel is likely to be our primary choice for multi-ton…
Relativistic spacecraft, like those proposed by the NASA Starlight program and the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative, will have to survive radiation production that is unique when compared to that experienced by conventional spacecraft. In a…
Relativistic stellar jets, produced in binary systems called microquasars, propagate through media with different spatial scales releasing their energy in the form of work and radiation from radio to gamma rays. There are several…
As part of the NASA Starlight collaboration, we look at the implications of radiation effects from impacts with the interstellar medium (ISM) on a directed energy driven relativistic spacecraft. The spacecraft experiences a stream of…
Nonthermal radiation observed from astrophysical systems containing relativistic jets and shocks, e.g., gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), active galactic nuclei (AGNs), and Galactic microquasar systems usually have power-law emission spectra. Recent…
This dissertation explores the dynamics of relativistic spaceflight, focusing on the risks associated with collisions and photon interactions as a spacecraft approaches velocities near the speed of light. The study emphasizes two primary…
We model accelerated trips at high-velocity aboard light sails (beam-powered propulsion in general) and radiation rockets (thrust by anisotropic emission of radiation) in terms of Kinnersley's solution of general relativity and its…
While special relativity imposes an absolute speed limit at the speed of light, our Universe is not empty Minkowski spacetime. The constituents that fill the interstellar/intergalactic vacuum, including the cosmic microwave background…
The interaction of a space system with its orbital environment is a major consideration in the design of any space system, since a variety of hazards are associated with the operation of spacecraft in the harsh space environment. In this…
The idea that the radio jets in AGN contain material in relativistic motion is supported by many lines of observational evidence, including morphology, brightness temperature estimated with interferometers and with intrinsic variations,…
The problems of hazardous radiation and collisions with matter on a warp driven ship pose considerable obstacles to this possibility for interstellar travel. A solution to these problems lies in the Broeck metric. It is demonstrated that…
Thanks to post-flight analyses of several artificial satellites carried out during last years, the meteoroids hazard for space navigation and in-orbit satellites permanence is now clear. Even if catastrophic impact is a rare event, high…
The study of the gamma-ray radiation produced by cosmic rays that escape their accelerators is of paramount importance for (at least) two reasons: first, the detection of those gamma-ray photons can serve to identify the sources of cosmic…
Electromagnetic radiation of a relativistic gas or plasma jet in the field of a plane gravitational wave is investigated. The gravitational wave is considered as a weak (linearized) field on flat Minkowski spacetime. It is assumed that the…
Laser sails propelled by gigawatt-scale ground-based laser arrays have the potential to reach relativistic speeds, traversing the solar system in hours and reaching nearby stars in years. Here, we describe the danger interplanetary dust…
This paper focuses on two aspects of the Physics of Radio Galaxies in which it has been proposed that relativistic beaming of radiation is necessary to account for the observations. Physical arguments are presented which show that it is…
The primary components of radiation in interplanetary space are galactic cosmic rays (GCR) and solar cosmic radiation (SCR). GCR originates from outside of our Solar System, while SCR consists of low energy solar wind particles that flow…
Highly relativistic jets from merger and accretion induced collapse of compact stellar objects, which may produce the cosmological gamma ray bursts (GRBs), are also very efficient and powerful cosmic ray accelerators. The expected…
Low energy cosmic rays (up to the GeV energy domain) play a crucial role in the physics and chemistry of the densest phase of the interstellar medium. Unlike interstellar ionising radiation, they can penetrate large column densities of gas,…