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Russia develops design for spaceship with nuclear engine
RIANOVOSTI ^ | October 28, 2009 | RIA Novosti

Posted on 10/28/2009 9:39:49 PM PDT by bogusname

FRYAZINO (Moscow Region), October 28 (RIA Novosti) - The Russian Federal Space Agency Roscosmos has developed a design for a piloted spacecraft powered by a nuclear engine, the head of the agency said on Wednesday.

"The project is aimed at implementing large-scale space exploration programs," Anatoly Perminov said at a meeting of the commission on the modernization of the Russian economy.

He added that the development of Megawatt-class nuclear space power systems (MCNSPS) for manned spacecraft was crucial for Russia if the country wanted to maintain a competitive edge in the space race, including the exploration of the Moon and Mars.

Perminov said that the draft design of the spacecraft would be finalized by 2012, and the financing for further development in the next nine years would require an investment of at least 17 billion rubles (over $580 million).

Anatoly Koroteyev, president of the Russian Academy of Cosmonautics and head of the Keldysh research center, earlier said that the key scientific and technical problem in sending manned missions to the Moon and Mars was the development of new propulsion systems and energy supplies with a high degree of energy-mass efficiency.

The current capabilities of the Russian space industry are clearly insufficient either to set up a permanent base on the Moon or accomplish an independent manned mission to Mars, he said.


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; Russia
KEYWORDS: energy; nuclear; nuclearpower; rocket; space
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To: bogusname

The Russian nuclear thermal rocket RD-0410 went through a series of tests on the nuclear test site 50°10′12″N 78°22′30″E / 50.170°N 78.375°E / 50.170; 78.375 near Semipalatinsk.[1] The engine was ground-tested at the Semipalatinsk Test Site.[2]


21 posted on 10/28/2009 10:25:05 PM PDT by org.whodat (Vote: Chuck De Vore in 2012.)
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To: KevinDavis

Hey Kev,
Heads up for a space ping.


22 posted on 10/28/2009 10:26:10 PM PDT by Captain Beyond (The Hammer of the gods! (Just a cool line from a Led Zep song))
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To: bogusname; sonofstrangelove
Regardless of the available power, a rocket does not go anywhere without the high-velocity ejection (consumption) of reaction mass.

Of course, the higher exhaust velocity you can achieve, the less reaction mass you have to expend...

Some nuke rocket proposals have considered using water as reaction mass. The old steam locomotives had water tanks sited every so far along the track to resupply the water they lost as steam. What does a nuclear powered rocketship do when it runs out of reaction mass?

23 posted on 10/28/2009 10:27:08 PM PDT by TXnMA ("Allah": Satan's current alias...!!)
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To: org.whodat

Good Place to test it. It is the most polluted place on the planet.


24 posted on 10/28/2009 10:27:20 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld ("We will either find a way, or make one."Hannibal/Carthaginian Military Commander)
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To: TXnMA
What does a nuclear powered rocketship do when it runs out of reaction mass?

If its in space outside a gravity well, stops accelerating, but just keeps on going.

25 posted on 10/28/2009 10:31:39 PM PDT by Pontiac (Your message here.)
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To: sonofstrangelove

Nuclear batteries, yes!

Build a “personal” sized, Nuclear powered, energy station for each and every home in America, I say.

People just don’t realize that nearly all problems can be solved, such as radioactive waste. The problems just need to be on a significant scale that will justify the science, time, and money spent.

When things really start falling apart on our Planet, then we’ll see solutions to problems we had previously believed were insurmountable.


26 posted on 10/28/2009 10:33:46 PM PDT by papasmurf (RnVjayB5b3UsIDBiYW1hLCB5b3UgcGllY2Ugb2Ygc2hpdCBjb3dhcmQh)
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To: bogusname

Welcome to the 1960’s, Russia.


27 posted on 10/28/2009 10:53:56 PM PDT by eclecticEel (The Most High rules in the kingdom of men ... and sets over it the basest of men.)
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To: sonofstrangelove

New Iranian car bomb coming to obambifail soon.


28 posted on 10/28/2009 11:07:38 PM PDT by TomasUSMC ( FIGHT LIKE WW2, FINISH LIKE WW2. FIGHT LIKE NAM, FINISH LIKE NAM)
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To: Pontiac

damn good info


29 posted on 10/28/2009 11:09:29 PM PDT by TomasUSMC ( FIGHT LIKE WW2, FINISH LIKE WW2. FIGHT LIKE NAM, FINISH LIKE NAM)
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To: Pontiac
"If its in space outside a gravity well, stops accelerating, but just keeps on going."

Agreed -- but faces the need for a comparable negative acceleration (deceleration) on the other end of the journey.

There were discussions years ago of picking up mass material (on Mars, for example) and somehow converting it to ejectable form for the return trip out of Mars' gravity well and for deceleration back at Earth.

That brought up questions of "Converting what to what form"? And, "How do we deal with a return reaction material with different (and, possibly non-uniform) per-particle mass from that which we used on the way out?'

The bottom line is that having power (even nuclear) alone does not equate to having a workable reaction engine system..

30 posted on 10/28/2009 11:15:10 PM PDT by TXnMA ("Allah": Satan's current alias...!!)
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To: Pontiac

Spectacular! But, I bet they had fun with the cleanup... ‘-)


31 posted on 10/28/2009 11:21:11 PM PDT by TXnMA ("Allah": Satan's current alias...!!)
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To: papasmurf
Build a “personal” sized, Nuclear powered, energy station for each and every home in America, I say.
I think that they are just around the corner but the problem of disposing the batteries. You can use a element such as thoruim, which is naturally slightly radioactive element
32 posted on 10/28/2009 11:22:32 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld ("We will either find a way, or make one."Hannibal/Carthaginian Military Commander)
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To: TomasUSMC

They are already racing cars on nuclear power.

http://www.entergy-nuclear.com/environment/nwr.aspx


33 posted on 10/28/2009 11:27:47 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld ("We will either find a way, or make one."Hannibal/Carthaginian Military Commander)
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To: Pontiac

What about the radioactive dust?


34 posted on 10/28/2009 11:51:57 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld ("We will either find a way, or make one."Hannibal/Carthaginian Military Commander)
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To: sonofstrangelove

Not exactly a Nuclear engine.

Weighing only 1275 pounds, it has a 2.3 liter 4 cylinder Mazda-Cosworth engine that produces 300hp at 8500rpm. It can accelerate to 100mph in less than six seconds and reaches a top speed of 170mph.


35 posted on 10/29/2009 3:43:07 AM PDT by Georgiaisred (Keep your powder dry)
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To: bogusname

BUMP for later read


36 posted on 10/29/2009 3:50:29 AM PDT by Bender2 ("I've got a twisted sense of humor, and everything amuses me." RAH Beyond this Horizon)
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To: Georgiaisred

It still puts out power though using a generator.


37 posted on 10/29/2009 11:18:15 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld ("We will either find a way, or make one."Hannibal/Carthaginian Military Commander)
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