Selva tells reporters "We have lost our edge in Hypersonics"

a reply to: penroc3

can you explain the virtual engine further. I'm not understanding.

a reply to: BASSPLYR

a normal engine use fuel to push the compressor rings around to create a high speed air flow out the back.


If you could create some form of plasma geometry when rotated would compress the air and push it out the back. One of the biggest issues at extreme altitudes is having enough oxygen to have combustion.

a reply to: penroc3

you don't need plasma to simulate compressor fans. there's a way to use the ionized air (plasma) to slow and compress the air with no moving parts and do the same thing for the turbine.

There are some scientific papers out there that go into detail about plasma, and how to use it in an engine, but I can't for the life of me remember how I found them and what site they where on, other than it was a PDF.

a reply to: grey580

Pages 19-20 are the most interesting part of that whole PDF IMHO.