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A physicist has come up with a new concept of a rocket motor thruster that could get people to Mars ten times faster.
The physicist in question, Fatima Ebrahimi, is the inventor of the concept and is part of the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) of the United States Department of Energy (DOE).
Ebrahimi’s study was published in the Journal of Plasma Physics.
A motor thruster based on solar flares
One of the main differences between Ebrahimi’s new rocket thruster concept and others that have been proven in space is that his uses magnetic fields to stimulate plasma particles at the back of the rocket. So far, those who have proven themselves in space use electric fields to stimulate plasma.
Plasma is one of the four fundamental states of matter and is made up of gaseous ions and free electrons. Our Sun is a hot plasma ball that uses a fusion reaction, for example.
Current plasma thrusters that use electric fields to propel these particles operate only at low speeds. However, Ebrahimi’s new plasma thruster concept was capable of creating exhaust gases at speeds of hundreds of kilometers per second – ten times faster than current thrusters.
This means that if used, astronauts could reach the outer planets much faster. The thrusters would significantly speed up the onset of the trip, ultimately reducing the entire journey time of the trip.
Ebrahimi pointed out that there are three main differences between his proposed rocket thruster concept and the current one. The former uses magnetic fields which provide a greater range of thrust power. Second, the new concept creates movement by ejecting plasma particles and plasmoid; the latter adds additional power to the thruster. Finally, magnetic fields allow the plasma inside the thruster to consist of light or heavy atoms. This allows scientists to tailor the thrust power per mission.
“This work was inspired by past fusion work and this is the first time that plasmoids and reconnection have been proposed for space propulsion, ”Ebrahimi said.
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