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To: MNJohnnie; Monkey Face; tuliptree76; King Prout; Dead Corpse
"... if you get OUT of the gravity well the problem becomes distance NOT propulsion?"

Correct. Any push will send you an infinite distance, but it will take you an infinity to get there.

Interstellar travel has two problems. Distance is one of them.

The other is the fact that once you get up to speed, you have to work just as hard to slow down.

Our rockets are virtually useless. There isn't any way to carry enough reaction mass to get a proper speed.

My plan at present is to use synchrotrons to accelerate very small amounts of matter to absolutely enormous velocities as a proplusion system. We would lose little mass, and should have sufficient power to do it that way, but the thrust will be fairly low, and the acceleration will take quite a while to build up.

I have to start my trip now. I'll talk to y'all when I get a chance.

2,632 posted on 01/06/2006 4:23:54 PM PST by NicknamedBob (How can I compete in a world of Cat 5 and wireless when my brain is wired by knob and tube?)
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To: NicknamedBob; All
Have a good trip NB!

Well gang, Had my first migrane this week and it is still lurking back there so since I have to work this week I am off. Be safe, be well, be happy!

2,634 posted on 01/06/2006 4:26:33 PM PST by MNJohnnie (Marine Corp T-Shirt "Guns don't kill people. I kill people." {Both Arabic and English})
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To: NicknamedBob

How about the Bussard Ramjet?


2,637 posted on 01/06/2006 4:30:11 PM PST by Irish_Thatcherite (~~~A vote for Bertie Ahern is a vote for Gerry Adams!~~~)
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To: NicknamedBob

Ta! Safe trip!


2,638 posted on 01/06/2006 4:30:21 PM PST by Monkey Face (Smith & Wesson: The original point and click interface.)
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To: NicknamedBob

did we ping you to the "to mars in 3 hours" thread?


2,741 posted on 01/06/2006 5:40:10 PM PST by King Prout (many accuse me of being overly literal... this would not be a problem if many were not under-precise)
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