Propulsion Systems for Earth and Space

[GeorgePhillips]

I am in the research process of planning a single person private mission to mars and space.

Money is an issue but Can be sacrificed to the mercy of working methods and science.

I have little experience in the field and that is wear your ideas and thoughts come in.

I am looking for a propulsion system that is the most Physically effective and compare the costs and output to other methods.

The most important factor is actual amount of force that the system displays.

The second most important is the amount of force comparable to the system or fuels own weight in earth.

The third most important factor is the amount of force after weight of the system is subtracted and the cost per unit measured in.

Any help is greatly welcomed and will further not just me but also science and the human race as a whole.

Edited August 1, 2012 by GeorgePhillips

[CaptainPanic]

When? Now, in a few years, or in 50-100 years (in other words, are we talking real stuff or sci-fi)?

 

Right now you have, Soyuz, Arianespace and SpaceX - and possible one or two more that I overlook. Here's a list of the costs of these systems (expressed in $/lbs in orbit). It's from 2002, but still quite relevant.

 

For propulsion once you're in space, I guess the boys at ESA or NASA might know. I guess an ion thruster is the most efficient.

 

My advice: don't do this alone.

[GeorgePhillips]

My goal is to have it done buy 2024. I have much computer and mechanics experience.

I also have several design concepts that are awaiting testing along with a sensors I have made and tungsten I have waiting to be tested as to see if it makes a good radiation shield against cosmic radiation.

I am here to show the world up.

I still need data on the wind forces of solar winds and high atmospheric winds.

The designs I have challenge modern space rocket designs. I have conponets that need testing. The test will start unmanned using a computer than connects to gps and turns it into fully 3d data.

I am stuck on propulsion. If there are no minds to speed up the process I will discover or have to revolutionize space propulsion methods my self.

It saddens me that you would consider it scifi or that no one has the ambition, drive, or intelligence to do something like this on there own.

When I am fully finished I wish to make all my findings and discovers open source after I get them patented.

My great fears are in 2029 a asteroid is scheduled to fly by earth. It is believed to be close enough to fly under satalites but isnt believed to hit earth.

I wouldn't want to take the change that life will die.

In 2023 a mars one program that is privately funded is going to settle people there slowly but there progress will be at a snails pace.

Don't do it alone? I am not the average sod. I will pay workers to build if needed but I cant rick fully sharing with some one who could put the program at risk.

I have made amazing progress alone so far.

Do you think Galileo or Davinchi needed help for there concepts?

We all have with in use the ability to do great things but some people where raised under different constraints and environments.

[sumit]

I like your ambition, but your statements speak of self obsession. Do stuff first and then show this pride. Actions speak louder than words. We all have that inner drive to pursue great things and become immortal in thought, but for that my friend we work hard. Let your work do this talking. Don't start comparisons with great men until you reach that level. I understand you completely, because i was like you some time ago, but i figured the drive to do greater things must be channeled properly. I wish you the best!

[nikhil gona]

Personal private missions to mars and beyond (with near-future technologies) are only possible with additional aid on the way such as fuel refilling stations in space, resting places on moon/mars/asteroids etc. As for going out of the earths gravitational pull, I think the cheap and best way is to use the space elevators which will be coming by 2020 (though each launch into low-earth-orbits through the elevator themselves may take 2-3 days). Once in the earths orbit, fueling station in the orbit can be used for fueling the ship. Of course, fuel has to be put into orbit first.

Or you can use sails (similar to solar sails) powered by highly coherent laser beams produced by orbiting satellites for a considerable distance.

 

 

Fuel refueling stations are being made possible by companies such as planetary resources who mines asteroids for precious resources and water is the most precious fuel in space.

Edited August 11, 2012 by nikhil gona

[Phi for All]

I am here to show the world up.

 

 

I am not the average sod.

 

 

Do you think Galileo or Davinchi needed help for there concepts?

Warning! Warning! Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!

 

 

 

 

Seriously, if you think Da Vinci worked alone, why are you asking for help here? Who is testing your shields? How are you testing them for micrometeor encounters? How are you going to avoid running into satellites and debris in LEO? How will the world feel when you endanger some of the really expensive and hard to maintain stuff in GEO?

 

Determination and drive are great things, but humans didn't get where they are technologically by working alone.

[triskaidekaphile]

I am no expert, but some concepts I've thought of include: hydrogen fuel, this is a tried and proven method of propulsion, lot of energy but must be cautious of storage, mixing, and ignition, weight might be tricky to work with. Ion propulsion as far as I know is best when used in space, not enough power for launch, since it relies on electricity ( as far as I know) that will present challenges that I'm not too familiar with at this time. Since solid fuel propulsion doesnt sound to practical for this, i'll skip to nuclear propulsion, this would be considered one of the more intresting concepts in that it is a long lasting fuel with considerable thrust, as far as I know though, this is more likely to be a propulsion for when in space, the basic design is a nuclear reactor in the center of the engine with hydrogen gas that flows from the front and flows over the reactor chamber and becomes heated and is shot out the back, I suppose you might combine oxygen to give additional thrust if leaving behind a radioactive vapor trail, a drawback to this (besides the obvious challenges) is that it is a process that is slow to change speed.

One more idea, if you could passively lift the rocket to a higher altitude then you should use less fuel, for instance, lifting the rocket with a hydrogen ballon or a platform lifted by balloons.

More about these can be found online of course and I wish you luck, and I appologize for any mistake I made in this assessment of possibilities.