alaska Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Johnson Space Center has been leading the development of a high-power, electrothermal plasma rocket  the variable-specific-impulse magnetoplasma rocket (VASIMR)  that is capable of exhaust modulation at constant power. An electrodeless design enables the rocket to operate at power densities much greater than those of more conventional magnetoplasma or ion engines. An aspect of the engine design that affords a capability to achieve both high and variable specific impulse (Isp) places the VASIMR far ahead of anything available today. Inasmuch as this rocket can utilize hydrogen as its propellant, it can be operated at relatively low cost. Want to read more about this? http://www.nasatech.com/Briefs/Sep01/MSC23041.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VonHelton Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Now we're getting somewhere!! .....Literally! :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaska Posted February 25, 2005 Author Share Posted February 25, 2005 Sure would blow the doors off todays Ion engines eh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VonHelton Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Sure would blow the doors off todays Ion engines eh? In the now immortal words of Austin Powers: "Oh yea, Baby!!" :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psheldrake1 Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 It's a good start. We could use this for inter system travel. Still to slow for system to system travel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaska Posted February 25, 2005 Author Share Posted February 25, 2005 One step at a time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VonHelton Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 One step at a time. If it shaves off just 1 month of flight time, that's better than what we had at first. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaska Posted February 25, 2005 Author Share Posted February 25, 2005 If it shaves off just 1 month of flight time, that's better than what we had at first. :) Damn straight! And until we get to Mars, I'm not going to worry about getting to another solar system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VonHelton Posted February 25, 2005 Share Posted February 25, 2005 Damn straight! And until we get to Mars' date=' I'm not going to worry about getting to another solar system.[/quote'] Well, if it was up to me, we'd probably already be on Mars by now......Or at least close to it. :cyclops: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
psheldrake1 Posted February 26, 2005 Share Posted February 26, 2005 Damn straight! And until we get to Mars' date=' I'm not going to worry about getting to another solar system.[/quote'] Well, if it was up to me, we'd probably already be on Mars by now......Or at least close to it If it was up to most of us, We'd have a full colony on Mars. Maybe second generation already. They would be calling us Martians Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaska Posted February 26, 2005 Author Share Posted February 26, 2005 And if wishes were horses beggars would ride! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VonHelton Posted February 26, 2005 Share Posted February 26, 2005 And if wishes were horses beggars would ride! Perhaps, but without wishes, we'd never go nowhere, do anything, or have nice stuff. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Relentless Posted February 26, 2005 Share Posted February 26, 2005 Damn straight! And until we get to Mars' date=' I'm not going to worry about getting to another solar system.[/quote'] Well, if it was up to me, we'd probably already be on Mars by now......Or at least close to it. :cyclops: We'd miss you ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaska Posted February 26, 2005 Author Share Posted February 26, 2005 Perhaps, but without wishes, we'd never go nowhere, do anything, or have nice stuff. I think that's more along the lines of dreams. Wishing won't make anything happen, but if you dream about something, and then work to fulfill that dream, that's when miracles happen! Inventors are dreamers, not wishers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VonHelton Posted February 26, 2005 Share Posted February 26, 2005 I think that's more along the lines of dreams. Wishing won't make anything happen' date=' but if you dream about something, and then work to fulfill that dream, that's when miracles happen! Inventors are dreamers, not wishers.[/quote'] Wishing, dreaming & hoping.......It all goes hand in hand to me. I know what I want, and have a pretty good idea how to get there. :thinking: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaska Posted February 26, 2005 Author Share Posted February 26, 2005 Don't take this the wrong way, and I'm really not being sarcastic (for once) but How Von? What do you have hidden up your sleeve? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VonHelton Posted February 26, 2005 Share Posted February 26, 2005 Don't take this the wrong way' date=' and I'm really not being sarcastic (for once) but How Von? What do you have hidden up your sleeve?[/quote'] We've talked about everything from religion to Jupiter...... Could you be a bit more specific? :stare: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaska Posted February 26, 2005 Author Share Posted February 26, 2005 Your personal plans for getting into outer space. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VonHelton Posted February 26, 2005 Share Posted February 26, 2005 Your personal plans for getting into outer space. Pardon the pun, but I thought you were referring to something more "Down to Earth". ......Understand something right now: No one on this board is going to Mars, Jupiter, or mining the Asteroid Belt. It isn't gonna happen, not in 50 lifetimes. .....Maybe not even in a hundred lifetimes. My inspiration for getting into stuff like this was a 15 year old boy who invented the Blackbird. ....Yet if you go to any website or read any book, you won't find that out. Why? Because although he was brilliant, he was also stupid, and didn't copyright the damn thing. I followed in his footsteps & made the same mistake. I designed the body for a fighter aircraft that could also be flown in space. This fighter had an unusally angular design to it. ....My parents have the "Dear John" letter I got back from NASA. My relatives in the Air Force couldn't track down the paperwork.....It had literally vanished. Would you like to take a guess at what I designed? See, we are "nobodys", you & I. It doesn't matter what ideas we come up with, or how brilliant we are, as long as we are nobodys, we won't get jack. This board is nothing more than a place to express my hopes & dreams. Now having said all of that, there might be an exception to the rule: ........Bert Rutan calls me up & he & I sit down & have a long talk over coffee. But I stand a better chance of hitting the Kentucky State Lottery, k? Enjoy my dreams for what they are........Dreams. But don't be deluded into thinking that any of them will come to fruition. :thinking: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alaska Posted February 26, 2005 Author Share Posted February 26, 2005 Sorry to hear about your design. But if you know that what you created is playing a part in some way, even if you're not getting credit for it, that's gotta be worth something. Congrats, my hat is off to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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