Future space power unit: Can Star Travel Humans fly far?
The universe, the vast starry sky, there are too many mystery in nature to affect people's curiosity, and urge people to stop explore. But today, the detector only flew away from the solar system, and the manned spacecraft was only to the moon. Does it say that the existing technical level can not achieve the ideal of human space?
500 years ago, in Columbus, the New World showed the new mainland to Europe, the Blazers of the United Kingdom, France, Spain, and Portugal did not hesitate to raise the West. Today, if we can find new in the universe, the planet that is suitable for human survival is undoubtedly faster.
At present, the NASA is preparing to implement a space exploration plan called "Earth Planet Searcher" (TPF). It is intended to send a TPF space telescope into space in the next 10 years. Similar planets with the earth. Although human beings don't know where the planet is like the planet, on the photos taken like TPF, the planet also seems to be a very weak spot that is shrouded in its nearby stellar rays. But this weak spot is enough to make humans understand the quality, temperature and substance of the planet. At the same time, it can also be inferred that it has a chemical label with life, such as an oxygen-rich atmosphere containing water vapor and methane. If we find what is expected, it is very likely to have the evidence of life in another planet, then human beings will naturally be happy, and we feel that we may not be alone in the universe. However, quietly thinking, we go out of the solar system, what is it?
To know, from our human beings, it is speculated that there is a stars of the Earth, Alphacentauri is from our 4.4-light year. This distance is 3000 times the flight distance of the farthest detector furthest in humans; A big planet, a giant scorpio 55 (55cancri) (star) with the solar system is about 50 light years away from the earth. Therefore, our human beings must go out of the solar system, walk into the deep-air transportation vehicles, that is, speed aircraft, it should be more advanced than the current space instruments manufactured by our human beings. However, engineers in NASA Jet Propeller Laboratory Robert Frisbe but confident. He believes that walking into the deep space is not a thing that is expected.
Frisby is currently engaged in advanced propeller concept research, his work and dreams are to find tools to complete interstellar trips. He believes that the five different advanced techniques he studied may allow astronauts to fly to the Alfa horsemoot in the next 50 years. Frisby said that "deep space detection is not a dream. When someone did it, we said that it is not a fantasy."
Flying out of the solar system, walking into another stellar system, costing will be huge, but it is also great!
Going out of the solar system to rely on nuclear power
In 1903, the Russian physicist Constantine Qi Orkovsky found a huge obstacle in the interstellar trip, that is, the maximum speed of the rocket is impossible to exceed twice the speed of the rocket propeller spray. Today's space planes are in the flight, the fuel is brought from the spouts from the spout than 3 miles per second, and the speed of the space shuttle cannot break through 6 miles per second. With such flight speed, the spacecraft takes 120,000 years to fly to the Alpha House Stellar System. Therefore, an astronaut must want to fly in his own birth (40 years), the speed of the spacecraft must be 3000 times the flight speed of the space shuttle.
How can I achieve so fast? Frisby said that the nuclear reactor in the three working forms of nuclear fission, nuclear fusion and anti-substances is expected to achieve this ideal.
Nuclear fission rocket
Scientists have more than 60 years of experience in dealing with the same nuclear fission. Decades ago, they made the atomic bomb and the controlled nuclear reactor using the nuclear fission principle. Under the leadership of George Chaptrin, researchers in the Leadership of George Chaptrin, the researchers of the American Lawrence Lifmore National Laboratory designed a conceptual type, a debris. The reactor is similar to a large "record". The "record" body is composed of graphite, and there are radioactive nuclear fuels (such as chalk and 镅). When working, the "record" rotates into the cylindrical tower, and the other radioactive substances in the Tong Tower have rapidly occurring the control chain fission reaction. The powerful magnetic field attached to the "record" reactor is bound to the fission debris generated together, ejected in the same direction, and the huge reaction force generated by the injection will push the rocket to a very high speed, ie 1.8 per second. 10,000 kilometers, about 6% of the speed of light.
In order to make the rocket speed reach a very light speed, 30,000 kilometers per second, Frisby proposed two fission rockets to become a secondary nuclear fission rocket. The rocket will be able to effectively push the rocket (detection spacecraft) to 12% of the speed. In this way, human beings can go through a long interstellar trip to the Alpha House Star, which is similar to the planets like the earth. If you want to detect a planet that is farther away from the earth, the astronauts cannot complete the long star trip at all years. Even if you can use more levels of nuclear fission rocket to assist in flight, they can only sigh in the sky.
镅 242 is not the elements present in nature, which is radioisotope obtained by bombardment with neutron.镅 242 is the most ideal can be used as an isotope of nuclear fuel because it only needs to reach 1% of uranium or mass of the critical state of the fissure, and can begin to fissure. Such fracture debris from conventional radioactive fuels such as uranium 235 and 239 is required because they need huge fuel rods to absorb fission products.
In order to greatly alleviate the weight of the spacecraft, it should be as small as possible, and the cracking rocket should use 镅 242, can produce a nuclear fuel that can be used as a high-energy high temperature fission product which propellant. However, according to the United States
Experts estimate that traveling to neighboring stellar system is approximately 2 million tons. However, if you switch to uranium or, then the required fuel weight will be more amazing, which will increase the volume and weight of the detector, so that the detector is very large and unrealistic.
Nuclear gauge rocket
Frisby believes that because nuclear fusion is combined with the nuclear nucleus rather than the nuclear nuclear division, the rocket engine is much perfect than the fission engine in the way energy. The polyterorodient reactor can reduce unnecessary radiation, and additional pins can easily obtain supplemental fuel. This is because there is a large amount of fuel deammonic and in the atmosphere of the moon and the atmosphere of Jupiter. This means that the use of nuclear polyvertural rockets can be added to the moon or Jupiter in the solar system as a vehicle, and then continue to travel.
But unfortunately, scientists have been dozens of efforts, so far, there is still no nuclear fusion reactor that can work properly. Humans have known how to detonate hydrogen bombs (nuclear fusion reactions when the hydrogen bomb explosion), but it is not possible to master the control technology. US New Jersey National Spherical Testing Device (NSTX) and the combined European ring (JET) and other fractal experiments are constrained in magnetic fields, and they are heated to millions of degrees. When the nuclear nuclear collides, there is an energy release. . However, the energy consumption in this type of test is almost twice that of it produces energy.
However, Frisby believes that the fractal technology is no longer far away. Once scientists master the controlled nuclear fusion, they will control the charged particles generated in the reaction and allow them to spray from the spout. The particles ejected from the nuclear polygebed reactive reactor allows the secondary rocket to reach 12% of the speed of light. The cosmic vessel promoted by the nuclear gathering rocket is similar to the Star travel of the nuclear fission rocket. It can quickly fly the most recent star, but there is no more potential to dig. The fuel required by nuclear aggregation rocket is approximately 2 million tons, but there is no thick radiation protection layer, which means that the volume of space instruments that use this power is much smaller. Anti-substance rocket
Albert Einstein's famous energy equation (E = MC2) indicates that substances are a concentrated form of energy. The fission and the polyvertency reaction convert only 1% of the reaction substance into energy. In fact, in fact, there is a way to make the conversion rate of matter to energy close to 100%, which is combined with its mirror "twins" brothers - ant substrates. Physicians have made a small amount of antimony after the basic particles close to the light speed. Scientists from Switzerland CERN High Energy Laboratory not long ago "capture" to 1 million anti-hydrogen atoms. It should be seen that the anti-substance will be an important fuel in the Star Travel Rocket. However, you want to get a large number of antigens needed to get the Star Travel Rocket, perhaps it is an incredible thing. But Frisby said: This is a quite direct way, we already have the magnetic fields, radiats, and particle beam required to produce antimatter.
In the anti-substance rocket, a certain amount of anti-hydrogen atom and an equal amount of hydrogen atoms mixed "combustion" in the combustion chamber. If the two sides are equal to half pounds, the energy generated during combination annihilation will be larger than the energy released by 10 mega of hydrogen bombs, and there is also a π-meon and μ meon particle stream with energy discharge. The particles are bound by using a fission rocket to allow them to eject from the nozzle, and the injection speed will reach a third of the speed, so that the highest speed of the rocket will reach 66% of the speed.
The two-stage anti-substance rockets to the Alpha horsema is 900,000 tons of fuel. In a farther distance interstellar trip, the four-stage (two-stage acceleration, two-level deceleration) rockets can make the anti-substance rocket show their advantages. According to Frisby calculations, flying to the Giant Scorpio 55 star from the Earth's 41-light year, it takes 38 million tons of fuel, which takes 130 years. It takes 400 years in the same voyage with a fission rocket.
There is a new momentum from the solar system.
The best way to travel in the interstellar trip will be to give up a lot of fuels that promote the flight of the spacecraft.
In the past, human-emitted Mercury Detectors, completed Apollode Month Plan and now the space shuttle now exposed the deficiencies in rocket propulsion: the large amount of fuel carrying the spacecraft hugely, because the rocket produced The power consumption is on the car fuel. This more primitive propulsion is still available in the launch of the man-made satellite and the moon moon plan, but engineers think that they need to find lighter, more flexible and flexible propulsion systems, so that the spaceship is close to the speed. Such a new type of propulsion system is currently two kinds, one of which will soon accept the test; and the other is like the Alpha House, it is still very far away from us.
Laser sail
In 1984, the Physicist of the Hughes Aircraft Company Research Laboratory proposed the concept of integrity in the interstellar trip to the ancient sail technology in its iconic paper. As the wind can make sailing boats over the sea, the powerful laser bundle can also promote the universe spaceship with big "sail" in space. After the laser beam is shot, it is transformed into power and promotes the universe spaceship. Scientists imagine that the laser in the solar system provides power to the spacecraft, so that it gradually speeds up and rushes to the distant world.
So far, engineers have developed a simple space sailboat, but it utilizes sunlight and non-laser bundles. In the next few months, the Planet Society (a private organization of space enthusiasts) plans to launch the first sun "sailing". This "sailboat" is known as the No. 1 (COSMOS1), 50 pounds, and its aluminized "sail" is 100 feet. "Sailboat" was scheduled to use submarine to launch from the Bo Bingyang Barron's sea seas in 2005. After leaving the atmosphere, the sun will drive it into a higher operational orbit. The working principle of the solar sail is that the solar (photon) that sails will be exposed back. Since the role of the force is mutual, the solar sail will "push" the photon "push" back, the photon will also generate a reaction to the solar sail. It is this reaction force to advance the spaceship. NASA Jet Propeller Lab The head "sailing" head "Sailing", Happ Pre, believes that this kind of propulsion that does not carry fuel will open up a new interstellar trip. However, since the sun is weakened as the distance increases, the "sailing" will not move forward after staying away from the sun.
Compared with sunlight, the focused laser beam can push "sailboat" to the Alpha pedestrian star, because the laser bundle does not increase and weaken as the distance increases as the distance. According to Favord's philosophy, Frisby depicts travel programs that humans fly 55 star stars to Giant's 55-star. He uses a 600-mile-wide aluminum film "sail" universe spacecraft, and the travel cabin is located in the middle of "sail". The high-energy laser beam produced by the laser that is erected on the earth or the moon surface is focused on the "sail" of the spacecraft. The laser will work for a few years to ensure that the spacecraft reaches its cruise speed. Then re-started from the arrival of the spacecraft to help the spacecraft lowered.
The melting point of metal aluminum is 1220 degrees, Frisby proposes that the idea of "sail" is to solve the "sail" self-heat dissipation problem, "sail" overheating is caused by high energy laser bundles. If you plan to assemble the spacecraft "sail" in the space, you should use lighter, more elastic materials. Jeffrey Landis in the Nasa Glen Research Center is studying a film made from metal niobium (melting is 4490 degrees) or diamond (3270 degrees to break into graphite). The high temperature material can withstand the irradiation of laser beams with smaller spot but more energy density. Diamond "sail" has the same function as Fresby's aluminum "sail", but it is faster to the spacecraft and can shorten the interstellar travel time.
If the laser beam is used to help human flying to 55 stars, then the laser output power will be unbelievable. According to the estimation of Frisby, the laser stabilized energy output required to promote the spacecraft should reach 170 million watts. To achieve such a huge energy output, Frisby proposes to use special devices agglomerate solar energy to pump lasers, that is, the laser produces a gathering, coherent high energy beam under the action of the sun. In fact, the University of Chicago, the University of Chicago has shown a new system that increases the density of ordinary light by 84,000 times.
If you have a laser sail technology, then humans don't have to worry about the fuel problem of far away flights. In addition, through a delicate design, when the spacecraft arrives at the destination, the middle part of the "sail" with the travel cabin will be detached from "sail", and "sail" that lost the intermediate portion will focus the laser beam on the travel cabin and help it. slow down. According to Friesby's research, the laser "sail" spacecraft can reach half of the speed of the speed in less than 10 years. If the laser "sail" in diameter is 200 miles, we can reach the Alpha pedestrium within 12 and a half; use 600 mile wide laser sails, and the planet with the Giant's 55 stars will meet only 86 year.
Polygenesis jet engine
The ideal spacecraft should have the advantages of laser sails and rockets, so that astronauts can manipulate it at will, while do not have to consider the problem of carrying and supplementing fuel.
In 1960, the technical idea proposed by Physicist Robert Barcer can meet such demanding requirements. He called his technology as a polyverted press jet engine. The engine uses a powerful magnet to form a large diameter magnetic funnel, and the effect of the magnetic funnel is to collect hydrogen along the interstellar travel as a fuel of the venom nuclear fusion reactor. Spacecraft without fuel load can be free to shuttle in the universe at a speed of the firing jet engines. Friser is a very cautious attitude of the coexist stamping jet engine technology, and it is considered that this concept is still not mature. In addition, the spacecraft with this technique is 4% of the flight speed, and the case is comparable to the polyverter rocket. When the speed is further improved, the magnetic funnel of the spacecraft can provide sufficient fuel to the reactor. Frisby Inference, the vessels with polymented stamped jet engines fly to the Alpha House and Giant's 55-star each requires 25 and 90 years.
There are two obvious problems in the forage of the gaute. One of the problems is that the fuel can generate resistance to the speed of the spacecraft to reduce the speed of the spacecraft, and the spacecraft may be close to stagnation due to friction in the area where the planet is relatively high. In fact, the aerospace engineer Robert Zhu Bolin has suggested using a similar magnetic field as a brake of Star Travel spacecraft, which can make the spaceship slow down, while saving fuel. The second thing that the problem is now the sputum and use in space in space, although ordinary hydrogen content is high, but no one knows how to make it a nuclear reaction.
It should be seen that although human beings are most important to solve the problem of transportation, according to the description of Frisby, we seem to see the hope of human beings out of the solar system. However, the path of human conquering the universe is still very long. There are still many problems on this long road, such as astronauts' survival and life problems, in flight, their food, oxygen and water, and them Mental health is a topic that needs to be studied.
May the human beings have come to the solar system as soon as possible, and the dreams of interstellar travel. Future space power unit: Can Star Travel Humans fly far?