Found this...
http://interestingengineering.com/index.php/starship-impulse-engines/
Star trek here we come.....
http://interestingengineering.com/index.php/starship-impulse-engines/
Star trek here we come.....
ooooo impulse engine.
- Thread starter Colbaker
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That was via mavity assists(Jupiter and Saturn assists). This is capable of it by itself, so much more useful.
Not nearly ready yet, but very interesting.
Or roughly 6 times faster than chemical rockets which have a exhaust velocity of 4600m/s (10,289miles per hour)
That is one crap article though in the Op.
http://www.uah.edu/news/research/2501-slapshot-to-deep-space
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Soldato
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its old news but warp drive is also in the theoretical stages: http://www.space.com/17628-warp-drive-possible-interstellar-spaceflight.html
Soldato
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Pretty sure one day something will break through and we'll all be off to mars and back for a 2 week holiday!
Caporegime
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In the past many people have said the same about other technologies, only to end up with an eggface.
I'm sure it will happen one day, just a question of time.
You can't go faster than the exhaust thrust velocity. Then you have to be able to carry enough fuel to reach that speed. Which is extremely hard for chemical rockets.
I love you
So, when you reach this speed where does the energy from the engines go?
Associate
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The final velocity depends on the exhaust gas velocity, and the amount of fuel burnt. It can be more than the exhaust velocity.
Heh, the kind of nerds that spun off numerous technologies that we use every day and think nothing of.
No - the exhaust thrust velocity is relative to the speed of the spacecraft. Until you approach the speed of light and relativistic effects come into play there is no "top speed". It's simply a matter of how much thrust you can generate, and for how long. With enough fuel you can significantly exceed the exhaust gas velocity.
Chemical rockets generate a massive amount of thrust, but consume fuel incredibly quickly. With a fusion based drive you typically get a much lower thrust (so lower acceleration), but the dramatically improved fuel efficiency allows the engine to be run for much longer.
A "top speed" is relative to the specific journey. If I'm travelling to Mars then I have a set distance to travel, so there is a maximum speed I can obtain, even if the engine is operating at 100 percent the entire time. Moreover, I need to be travelling slow enough relative to Mars when I arrive, so that I can enter orbit. Therefore I may need to use the engine to slow myself down in the latter half of the journey.
For a longer journey, say to one of the outer planets, you could obtain a much higher speed (assuming you carry extra fuel).
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I can't open the link here at work for some reason, but I assume so. The main benefit of the fusion drive tech is the massively improved fuel efficiency. The spacecraft will continue to accelerate as long as the engine is active.
A chemical rocket uses a massive boost for a very short time, whereas a fusion drive will operate for much much longer (with lower acceleration). Launching a rocket from Earth's surface has diminishing returns though - if you want to travel very fast with a chemical engine the most efficient method is to fuel it in space, sending the fuel up on several smaller rockets.