NASA Selects Companies to Develop Super-Fast Deep Space Engine

"NASA announced it will partner with a variety of companies in new attempts
to create more advanced space technology - including a new engine that could
get humans to Mars in less than 40 days.

The Texas-based Ad Astra Rocket company, a member of NASA's 12 Next Space
Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextStep), boasted their VASIMR
engine can get humans to Mars in 39 days."

See:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NA...ngine_999.html

wrote in message
...

"NASA announced it will partner with a variety of companies in new attempts
to create more advanced space technology - including a new engine that
could
get humans to Mars in less than 40 days.

The Texas-based Ad Astra Rocket company, a member of NASA's 12 Next Space
Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextStep), boasted their VASIMR
engine can get humans to Mars in 39 days."

See:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NA...ngine_999.html

Yeah and with what power source?

VASIMR is a great idea, but so far I haven't seen a decent solution to its
power demands.



--
Greg D. Moore http://greenmountainsoftware.wordpress.com/
CEO QuiCR: Quick, Crowdsourced Responses. http://www.quicr.net

On 2015-04-10 17:59:56 +0000, said:

"NASA announced it will partner with a variety of companies in new attempts
to create more advanced space technology - including a new engine that could
get humans to Mars in less than 40 days.

The Texas-based Ad Astra Rocket company, a member of NASA's 12 Next Space
Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextStep), boasted their VASIMR
engine can get humans to Mars in 39 days."

See:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NA...ngine_999.html


Will I live long enough to see VASIMIR tested on ISS?

Anybody know the current plans?

this will cut travel time dramatically, cut costs of deep space missions since fewer consumables and spare parts will be necessary, the travel time cut will help minimise the astronauts health risks for long duration trips.

in a emergency short travel time for supplies will help too.

build the vehicle to have a 3 month lifeboat ability, to give nasa time to launch rescue supplies....

do note fred j mc call AKA no nothing laughed at shorter travel times. Popycock is his belief..........

Fred, PROVED WRONG AGAIN

On Monday, April 13, 2015 at 12:11:25 AM UTC-4, Fred J. McCall wrote:
Poor Bobbert. Too stupid to leave in any context...

bob haller wrote:

this will cut travel time dramatically, cut costs of deep space missions since fewer consumables and spare parts will be necessary, the travel time cut will help minimise the astronauts health risks for long duration trips.

in a emergency short travel time for supplies will help too.

build the vehicle to have a 3 month lifeboat ability, to give nasa time to launch rescue supplies....

do note fred j mc call AKA no nothing laughed at shorter travel times. Popycock is his belief..........

Fred, PROVED WRONG AGAIN


Gee, teleportation would be even faster. Shouldn't we wait for that,
Bobbert?

--
"Some people get lost in thought because it's such unfamiliar
territory."
--G. Behn

notefred fails to respond to any of the issuesI brought up....

and now marks his posts to disappear in 6 days. He should move to adisappear before posted since his babble adds nothing but FUD here

On Friday, April 10, 2015 at 5:04:55 PM UTC-4, Greg (Strider) Moore wrote:
wrote in message
...

"NASA announced it will partner with a variety of companies in new attempts
to create more advanced space technology - including a new engine that
could
get humans to Mars in less than 40 days.

The Texas-based Ad Astra Rocket company, a member of NASA's 12 Next Space
Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextStep), boasted their VASIMR
engine can get humans to Mars in 39 days."

See:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NA...ngine_999.html

Yeah and with what power source?

VASIMR is a great idea, but so far I haven't seen a decent solution to its
power demands.



--
Greg D. Moore http://greenmountainsoftware.wordpress.com/
CEO QuiCR: Quick, Crowdsourced Responses. http://www.quicr.net



http://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct...71109 ,d..dGY

Abstract. Prospects for a low specific mass multi-megawatt nuclear space power plant were examined assuming closed cycle coupling of a high-temperature fission reactor with magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) energy conversion and utilization of a nonequilibrium helium/xenon frozen inert plasma (FIP).

At this temperature weight scales with power according to;


W = 1500 kg / MW + 1500 kg

10 km/sec 30 km/sec 50 km/sec

1 MWe = 3,000 kg. 20.39 kgf 6.80 kgf 4.08 kgf
3 MWe = 6,000 kg. 61.18 kgf 20.39 kgf 12.24 kgf
10 MWe = 16,500 kg. 203.94 kgf 67.98 kgf 40.79 kgf
30 MWe = 46,500 kg. 611.83 kgf 203.94 kgf 122.37 kgf

Acceleration ranges from 1/73rd gee to 1/730th gee. At the lower range you can 1.15 km/sec to the speed of a spacecraft per day. At the higher range you can add 11.5 km/sec to the speed of a spacecraft per day.

SOLAR

Modern ultra-light solar sails achieve 1500 kg/MW and less. Those that use ultra-thin reflective films achieve 150 kg/MW. Solar cells at the higher range - assuming 1,500 kg for power conditioning as in the above case;

10kps 30kps 50kps
POWER WEIGHT DIAM. uGee uGee uGee

1 MWe = 1,650 kg 36.6 m 12.36 4.12 2.47
3 MWe = 1,950 kg 63.4 m 31.38 10.46 6.28
10 MWe = 3,000 kg 115.8 m 67.98 22.66 13.60
30 MWe = 6,000 kg 200.5 m 101.97 33.99 20.39

These achieve 20 microgees to 100 microgees. This is 16.9 km/sec per day to 84.5 km/sec per day.

Being able to refuel with water, which is abundant on Ceres, and is in a very low gravity well, creates a very interesting capability. Even though solar energy is far less intense at 2.76 AU from Sol, its still interesting.

A solar power station that beams energy from Earth orbit to a spacecraft, provides substantial power with very little weight aboard the vehicle, and power levels are such that acceleration times take only hours instead of day..

A 600 MW power station in GEO that beams power to a solar pumped ion engine that normally operates at 1 MW from sunlight alone, provides hours long boost to velocities that take it between worlds.

A similar station in orbit around Mars, or Ceres, slows the vehicle into a low orbit where needed or in the case of Ceres, to a landing on the surface.. There water is processed into propellant and carried back to Mars orbit, and even to Earth orbit.

At 150 kg per MW a 600 MW station requires 90,000 kg - or two Falcon Heavy launches.

Propellant needed with a 50 km/sec exhaust speed, to change speed by 10 km/sec is 18.2% take off weight. So, a 53,000 kg stage must carry 9,462 kg of water propellant, leaving 43,538 kg useful load.

On Sunday, April 12, 2015 at 1:26:28 PM UTC-4, Robert Love wrote:
On 2015-04-10 17:59:56 +0000, said:

"NASA announced it will partner with a variety of companies in new attempts
to create more advanced space technology - including a new engine that could
get humans to Mars in less than 40 days.

The Texas-based Ad Astra Rocket company, a member of NASA's 12 Next Space
Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextStep), boasted their VASIMR
engine can get humans to Mars in 39 days."

See:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NA...ngine_999.html


Will I live long enough to see VASIMIR tested on ISS?

Anybody know the current plans?

NEXT or Vasimir could use the ISS power supplies to boost it on a trip through interplanetary space.

On 2015-04-18 10:19:47 +0000, William Mook said:

On Sunday, April 12, 2015 at 1:26:28 PM UTC-4, Robert Love wrote:
On 2015-04-10 17:59:56 +0000, said:

"NASA announced it will partner with a variety of companies in new attempts
to create more advanced space technology - including a new engine that could
get humans to Mars in less than 40 days.

The Texas-based Ad Astra Rocket company, a member of NASA's 12 Next Space
Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextStep), boasted their VASIMR
engine can get humans to Mars in 39 days."

See:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NA...ngine_999.html



Will I live long enough to see VASIMIR tested on ISS?

Anybody know the current plans?

NEXT or Vasimir could use the ISS power supplies to boost it on a trip
through interplanetary space.

It's silly to think NASA is planning anything like this, even if
technically feasible. I hope I'm wrong but NASA is adrift right now.

I'll just be happy to see Vasimir tested in an operational enviornment.
If ISS is to exist long term, then the US needs to provide some
reboost capability. Strangely, Vasimir won't be used for this. Is
it do to the mounting angle planned for Vasimir, the power draw or the
spoiling of the microgravity environment?

On Sunday, April 19, 2015 at 12:18:00 PM UTC-4, Robert Love wrote:
On 2015-04-18 10:19:47 +0000, William Mook said:

On Sunday, April 12, 2015 at 1:26:28 PM UTC-4, Robert Love wrote:
On 2015-04-10 17:59:56 +0000, said:

"NASA announced it will partner with a variety of companies in new attempts
to create more advanced space technology - including a new engine that could
get humans to Mars in less than 40 days.

The Texas-based Ad Astra Rocket company, a member of NASA's 12 Next Space
Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextStep), boasted their VASIMR
engine can get humans to Mars in 39 days."

See:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NA...ngine_999.html



Will I live long enough to see VASIMIR tested on ISS?

Anybody know the current plans?

NEXT or Vasimir could use the ISS power supplies to boost it on a trip
through interplanetary space.

It's silly to think NASA is planning anything like this,

No its not silly at all.

Remember Skylab. Skylab is thought of as a space station today, but NASA developed the technology for multiple uses. That's why NASA was so quick with Skylab because they were looking at the S-IV-B stage and the S-II stage as habitats, mission modules, and space stations for terrestrial, lunar, and mars operations. The same technology that makes ISS possible is easily adapted to these other uses.

This is from a 1970 report to Congress on the advantage of common systems.

http://goo.gl/Vs9Tn3

The space station modules are capable of independent operation and capable of being detached and moved. There is absolutely no reason we can't fly to Mars or the Moon in them.

even if
technically feasible.

It is technically feasible. The point is, its the low hanging fruit. Its the least expensive way to get to Mars. Boosting the ISS or a portion of the ISS, to Mars, and landing on Diemos and Phobos, and returning to Earth orbit, leverages the $150 billion spent putting ISS in place.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vblN33OJCg

I hope I'm wrong but NASA is adrift right now.

In the Eisenhower Presidential Library, there are a series of letters exchanged between the President and US Senate leaders regarding the space question after Sputnik. I had the great opportunity to study these at one time, and hope to one day write a book about these letters. The point is, every organization of merit has an executive function. A board of directors and a chair for that board. The natural chairman of NASA's board should have been Werner vonBraun. Other board members were Krafft Ehricke, Walter Dornberger and Ernst Stuhlinger.

Eisenhower viewed Sputnik as a propaganda ploy by the Soviets to inspire Americans to over invest in space and do so in a highly public way that compromised our security. So, he put the essential long-range planning function in the hands of Richard Nixon and other future Vice Presidents, and created an Advisory Board to the Vice President. The insertion of a political position into what should rightly be a-political, permanently weakened NASA and made it impossible for them to make any lasting Long-Term plans. Eisenhower felt that at some point Americans would come back to their senses and abandon interest in space as they once abandoned interest in lighter than air craft. At that point, the military would take back those assets from the civilian space program that served the national interest. In Eisenhower's view, this was the best way to address the national security needs of the USA going forward.

JFK ran against Nixon on the platform of leadership in space exploiting the fact that many of our best capabilities at that time were secret. He spoke of closing a missile gap which didn't really exist, except in the public's perception.

Where Eisenhower didn't trust 'those damned NAZIs' (a direct quote) JFK embraced vonBraun's vision of peace through US supremacy in the *development* of off-world assets and resources. This included not only space based weapons systems, but also space based transport & communications, space based sensing, space based energy, space based mining, space based manufacturing, and space based living.

I'll just be happy to see Vasimir tested in an operational enviornment.
If ISS is to exist long term, then the US needs to provide some
reboost capability. Strangely, Vasimir won't be used for this. Is
it do to the mounting angle planned for Vasimir, the power draw or the
spoiling of the microgravity environment?

Reboost is easily provided today, and doesn't need Vasimir.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sI8ldDyr3G0

Even though Ion engines and Vasimir, can provide reboost with far less propellant - the propellant requirements for reboost - are small compared to the other inputs.

The same attachment points for the reboost engines can serve to attach solar powered ion modules - that give far more delta vee than the current reboost engines do.

Now, the NEXT ion engines, have an exhaust speed of 50 km/sec. The delta vee required to fly to Mars and return to Earth, is modest compared to this. I go into detail in a post here;

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/wedne...?trk=prof-post

On Sunday, April 19, 2015 at 7:12:24 PM UTC-4, William Mook wrote:
On Sunday, April 19, 2015 at 12:18:00 PM UTC-4, Robert Love wrote:
On 2015-04-18 10:19:47 +0000, William Mook said:

On Sunday, April 12, 2015 at 1:26:28 PM UTC-4, Robert Love wrote:
On 2015-04-10 17:59:56 +0000, said:

"NASA announced it will partner with a variety of companies in new attempts
to create more advanced space technology - including a new engine that could
get humans to Mars in less than 40 days.

The Texas-based Ad Astra Rocket company, a member of NASA's 12 Next Space
Technologies for Exploration Partnerships (NextStep), boasted their VASIMR
engine can get humans to Mars in 39 days."

See:

http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/NA...ngine_999.html



Will I live long enough to see VASIMIR tested on ISS?

Anybody know the current plans?

NEXT or Vasimir could use the ISS power supplies to boost it on a trip
through interplanetary space.

It's silly to think NASA is planning anything like this,

No its not silly at all.

Remember Skylab. Skylab is thought of as a space station today, but NASA developed the technology for multiple uses. That's why NASA was so quick with Skylab because they were looking at the S-IV-B stage and the S-II stage as habitats, mission modules, and space stations for terrestrial, lunar, and mars operations. The same technology that makes ISS possible is easily adapted to these other uses.

This is from a 1970 report to Congress on the advantage of common systems..

http://goo.gl/Vs9Tn3

The space station modules are capable of independent operation and capable of being detached and moved. There is absolutely no reason we can't fly to Mars or the Moon in them.

even if
technically feasible.

It is technically feasible. The point is, its the low hanging fruit. Its the least expensive way to get to Mars. Boosting the ISS or a portion of the ISS, to Mars, and landing on Diemos and Phobos, and returning to Earth orbit, leverages the $150 billion spent putting ISS in place.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vblN33OJCg

I hope I'm wrong but NASA is adrift right now.

In the Eisenhower Presidential Library, there are a series of letters exchanged between the President and US Senate leaders regarding the space question after Sputnik. I had the great opportunity to study these at one time, and hope to one day write a book about these letters. The point is, every organization of merit has an executive function. A board of directors and a chair for that board. The natural chairman of NASA's board should have been Werner vonBraun. Other board members were Krafft Ehricke, Walter Dornberger and Ernst Stuhlinger.

Eisenhower viewed Sputnik as a propaganda ploy by the Soviets to inspire Americans to over invest in space and do so in a highly public way that compromised our security. So, he put the essential long-range planning function in the hands of Richard Nixon and other future Vice Presidents, and created an Advisory Board to the Vice President. The insertion of a political position into what should rightly be a-political, permanently weakened NASA and made it impossible for them to make any lasting Long-Term plans. Eisenhower felt that at some point Americans would come back to their senses and abandon interest in space as they once abandoned interest in lighter than air craft. At that point, the military would take back those assets from the civilian space program that served the national interest. In Eisenhower's view, this was the best way to address the national security needs of the USA going forward.

JFK ran against Nixon on the platform of leadership in space exploiting the fact that many of our best capabilities at that time were secret. He spoke of closing a missile gap which didn't really exist, except in the public's perception.

Where Eisenhower didn't trust 'those damned NAZIs' (a direct quote) JFK embraced vonBraun's vision of peace through US supremacy in the *development* of off-world assets and resources. This included not only space based weapons systems, but also space based transport & communications, space based sensing, space based energy, space based mining, space based manufacturing, and space based living.

I'll just be happy to see Vasimir tested in an operational enviornment.
If ISS is to exist long term, then the US needs to provide some
reboost capability. Strangely, Vasimir won't be used for this. Is
it do to the mounting angle planned for Vasimir, the power draw or the
spoiling of the microgravity environment?

Reboost is easily provided today, and doesn't need Vasimir.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sI8ldDyr3G0

Even though Ion engines and Vasimir, can provide reboost with far less propellant - the propellant requirements for reboost - are small compared to the other inputs.

The same attachment points for the reboost engines can serve to attach solar powered ion modules - that give far more delta vee than the current reboost engines do.

Now, the NEXT ion engines, have an exhaust speed of 50 km/sec. The delta vee required to fly to Mars and return to Earth, is modest compared to this. I go into detail in a post here;

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/wedne...?trk=prof-post

just whats needed to kill astronauts.

have them dependent on a aged out of date station that was never designed to be refurbishied in orbit....

now perhaps building new modules and launching them? OK

but not the existing station which was scheduled to be deorbited a few years ago