Bush backs nuclear space rocket to Mars

The Telegraph (U.K.) ^ | 01/18/03 | Toby Harnden

[Pokey78]

A nuclear rocket programme that could put a man on Mars within the next decade and triple the speed of space travel is to receive "very significant" funding from the Bush administration.

Nasa is expected to announce that developing a 60,000 mph nuclear-powered rocket is its top research priority and have named the initiative Project Prometheus.

Sean O'Keefe, the Nasa administrator, said President Bush may announce the project during his State of the Union address later this month.

"We've been restricted to the same speed for 40 years," he told the Los Angeles Times. "With the new technology, where we go next will only be limited by our imagination."

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[demlosers]

VASMIR?

[KevinDavis]

That is cool! I wonder if there is going to be a major announce about Mars explortation soon?

[Senator Pardek]

I believe this would cancel at least one treaty, no?

[ffusco]

What treaty? The Salt's didn't resrict nuclear propulsion.

[JohnBovenmyer]

Perhaps the Test Ban treaty banned exploading nukes in space.

[Paradox]

VASIMR is the actual acronym. Cool (hot?) stuff!

[Brett66]

Posted here too:

NASA eyes nuclear-powered rocket

[Walkingfeather]

unless this rocket has several feet of lead lining it, they will all be dead from cosmic radiation exposure.

[proust]

dead or turn into the fantatsic four!

[roadcat]

I presume the first ship will be named the X303.

It would be interesting to see test trials of the engine on land. Whoa! Is Craig Breedlove still around?

[DAnconia55]

Well it should be private, but I can't complain.

Gotta admit Bush is doing better recently. Things would be much better if the Senate Republicans were more like him...

[RightWhale]

This appears to be hype. The nuke will be small, cheap, and suitable for unmanned probes. A manned flight would cost 20 times this program, and would take twice as long to develop.

[Fitzcarraldo]

O'Keefe, the accountant, looks at the bottom line. Increase the ISP of a rocket and you need less fuel to reach the same velocity. Less fuel or less time in transit means less material launched from Earth translates directly into money saved.

For unmanned cargo to Mars, the same propulsion stage can be used, but at standard delta-v's and trip times (8 months). The propulsion stages can be stored in Mars orbit for future use or to power an energy beaming antenna.

[RightWhale]

For unmanned cargo to Mars, the same propulsion stage can be used

Not at all. This one is intended for deep space: out where solar is too weak to efficiently power the ion thrusters. A manned nuke to Mars would use thermal thrusters rather than ion thrusters.

[Joe Hadenuf]

To bad we have abandoned the moon. We would be better off going back to the moon to conduct thorough scientific explorations of the lunar surface. It's my opinion that we should of had a permanent lunar base station to undertake these endeavors well over a decade ago. We haven't even scratched the lunar surface, so to speak.

[anymouse]

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