Since the first man-made satellite has orbited Earth in October 1957, the spacecraft are launched from Earth by using chemical propulsion rocket engines. Yet, many different engine designs and different propellant combinations later, the technology remains the same old chemical propulsion of internal reaction mass with an extremely low specific impulse due to a limited amount of fuel on board, although 90% of the spacecraft’s launch mass is fuel. The fuel-to-payload prohibitive ratio of this traditional propulsion technology makes space exploration expensive and rather restrained. To ensure regular delivery of cargo and people to the Moon, Mars and other destinations within our Solar system and beyond, to create and support permanent human settlements in space, millions of tons of cargo, and at some point, thousands or even millions of humans must be transported from/to Earth. It is clearly an impossible task to do this with chemical propulsion rockets. The required amount of energy for interplanetary flights can only be provided by nuclear power sources. A nuclear fission reactor is not suitable for the task as only the thermal energy of the reaction can be used. Basically, any modern nuclear power plant is just a good old steam engine with a nuclear fuel inside instead of coal, and an attached electric turbine. Low efficiency thermal conversion, large quantities of coolant are some of the major disadvantages of this power source in its current state. Heat dissipation in space vacuum is only achievable through thermal emission that requires massive radiators. A 500 MW nuclear power plant aboard of a 4-10-person spacecraft would require square miles of radiators. Our team’s invention, Electromagnetic Spacetime Continuum Propulsion System for Space Travel, Astrodrive, powered by a thermonuclear reactor, could be a real breakthrough solution to deep space exploration. Our company is developing the Direct Energy Conversion Open-Architecture Nuclear Reactor (DECOANR) to provide reliable energy for manned and unmanned missions within the Solar system and beyond. DECOANR is a toroidal thermonuclear MHD generator that transforms kinetic energy of charged plasma directly into electricity to power Astrodrive. Trip to Mars could be achieved in less than a week at comfortable 1 g acceleration/deceleration. Travel to the edge of our Solar system could last only a few months. Interplanetary shuttle could become a near-future reality. Even the closest star systems are no longer unreachable. Our calculation and test results show a spacecraft with a launch mass of about one million tons, and certainly smaller spacecraft, will be able to launch from the Earth surface, and certainly from the surface of Mars. In just a week, using only several kilograms of hydrogen, people and cargo can be delivered to Mars. Throughout the journey, due to the spacecraft’s continuous acceleration/deceleration, a comfortable artificial “gravity” of 1 g will be maintained. Delivery of millions of tons of cargo to the Moon and Mars will support humans in permanent settlements. At the same time, the cost of cargo delivery will not exceed the cost of air transportation within Earth. The new revolutionary propulsion system has been developed and tested, the nuclear power source is next.
Our technological innovations will take humanity to the stars, enable asteroid mining, provide access to the vast riches of the Universe. The Age of Spacefaring is truly upon us.
