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VASIMR Ion Engine Could Cut Mars Trip To 39 Days
An anonymous reader writes "It would take about 39 days to reach Mars, compared to six months by conventional rocket power. 'This engine is in fact going to be tested on the International Space Station, launched about 2013,' astronaut Chris Hadfield said. The Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR®) system encompasses three linked magnetic cells. The 'Plasma Source' cell involves the main injection of neutral gas (typically hydrogen, or other light gases) to be turned into plasma and the ionization subsystem. The 'RF Booster' cell acts as an amplifier to further energize the plasma to the desired temperature using electromagnetic waves. The 'Magnetic Nozzle' cell converts the energy of the plasma into directed motion and ultimately useful thrust."
A few hundred Newtons here, a few hundred Newtons there, and pretty soon you're talking about some real delta-v!
But does this process create feedback over communications systems to create cool sound effects as the ship whooshes by?
Sorry. Star Wars geek moment...
Yeah, I was totally going to go for one of those conventional rockets for my trip to Mars, but now I'm seriously considering a VASIMR Ion Engine.
Let the common name be "impulse engines".
Caffeine is my anti-drug!
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You could have travelled those 800 miles in 4 hours with a VASMIR Ion Drive.
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Hooray! Now maybe Webster, TX will be know for something other than being a speed trap between NASA and I-45.
And in 12 months time, Richard Branson will probably have one.
It's called acceleration. Duh...
Oh good point ... so is it 39 days or, ahem, 39 Canadian days ...
If I'd left when I first heard this, I'd be about 1/3 way there, time-wise.
Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
Since when do more powerful engines imply safer?
Trip times may vary as folks stop for bathrooms, coffee, and whatnot along the way. So that's where they're getting the 50 day difference.
It's NOT me! It's the meds! I'm on 1000mg of Fukitol.
For 10 years now, I'm commuting to work with my old Ford Pinto.
Until I read the ad in the news paper and decided it was time for a change.
Now I'm owning on of the modern cars with a VASIMR Ion Engine and have cut my commuting time down by 105 percent. And with the money saved I'm buying a new house, yacht, motorbike and wife.
And when my boss saw my new VASIMR ion engine has gave me a raise and promoted me !
Thanks VASIMR ion engine cooperation, your incredible product saved the day and changed my life for the better !
Bad premise. Since the Bush administration, most of us don't have any national pride.
True, but then Canada isn't a real country either! (ducks!)
He's clearly taking the Interplanetary Date Line into account in his calculations.
This guy's the limit!
About as many as don't have heath care coverage.
preferred 39 days of abstinence to 6 months!
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Oh good point ... so is it 39 days or, ahem, 39 Canadian days ...
That's 39 Metric days. To convert to American days, you double it and add 30.
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I think they mean 39 work-days, 89 days in total.
Obviously the engine will not work on weekends, so that's 2 days out of 7, roughly 24 in total.
Then there are religious holidays for the astronauts, not to mention national holidays for each nationality represented in the team. I reckon that's about 3 days a month, or roughly 9 days in total.
Then there's mandatory vacation time, about 25 days a year or roughly 8 days for the trip.
Assuming everybody is working really hard, coffee, cigarette and bathroom breaks will probably only add up to 3 days in total.
Of the remaining 45 days, one is preparation before the trip, one to really get going and one is basically wasted on the whole "arrival, get the luggage out and unpack it". Same thing on the Mars side. That's another 6 days.
This is the reason for the difference.
Pass..I hear it won't run Hulu in full Screen..
Why buy a new car, when you can just make your "pinto" bigger with C1AL15!
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If we launch from Cape Canaveral, we only risk contaminating Central Florida.
Spend more time reading, and less time posting, please.
You must be new here, right?
VASIMR.
...what.
There is simply too much glass..
I dunno.
If Freud were alive today, he'd have a field-day comparing launch vehicles (size, reliability, national ego, etc.) to penises. I reckon especially with the new flesh-colored Ares upper-stage.
I know I do.
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Do all Canadian astronauts launch with mittens close at hand? Does the other pocket visible in the picture contain pucks?
yes but if we use all the comets, where will we get the ice without bugs in it to cool the oceans to combat global warming?
I think we Oort to have enough.
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