you do need explosive energies to travel fast enough through space
This flight to mars is going to be very hard
Approximately a year .
The ORION is insane but I was talking about a constant nuclear reaction that can be held under control

Te annihilation (matter - antimatter reaction)propultion is allso a good alternative but it is too far away to thik about it right now but the idea is so futuristic i even made a report on it in school

Oh, you mean a fusion drive? What you really want with space drives is efficiency, and ion drives have those in spades... basically, you want your exhaust going as fast as possible. Light is the best, so a photon drive would be ideal, basically a big laser cannon. Better still, put the laser on a moon and fire it at a sail that pulls your payload.

But yes, matter/antimatter propulsion is way efficient!

[Edited on 19-11-2003 by Lampyridae]

try to find a project or a concept similar to the ORION but with a constant nuclear reaction
I am searhing for one now but still with no result

PS: I'm not even sure that such a project exists but see it that way: if I can think of one than a rocket scientist can do it twice

I've heard of such, using fissionable powder, but it never got far. Are you thinking of NERVA, perhaps?

I think that's it
I saw a site with some info but nothing specific

Only a photo of the testing aria

why has the programm been cancelled

Originally posted by Lampyridae


But yes, matter/antimatter propulsion is way efficient!

[Edited on 19-11-2003 by Lampyridae]

In case anyone cares, a read somewhere, I think it was in a magazine, half a pound of matter and antimatter mixed together would result in a 10 megaton nuclear blast.

The problem with using lasers and solar sails and all that stuff is control issues. What if an asteriod passes between them. And assuming we're still talking about Mars, how is the astronaut going to get back? So far as I know, you can't make lasers "suck" a solar sail. And its pretty unrealistic to plant one on Mars...

laser propulsion would never work. how in hell are you going to get back like Pherophile said. second off, you can only travel in a straight line. and youd have to carry some other kind of fuel to burn off to use to deaccelerate.

i think the nearest propulsion drive that nasa will use is the ION drive. i worked at JPL for 5 years i think without a problem and it sent cassini too.