Fusion-powered rockets promise to solve problems of deep-space travel that have long plagued plans for manned missions to Mars — long journeys, high costs and health risks, among them. Scientists at the University of Washington and a space-propulsion company named MSNW say they are getting to closer to creating a feasible fuel for travel to other planets.
‘It could eventually lead to making interplanetary travel commonplace.’- John Slough, a UW research associate professor of aeronautics and astronautics
“Using existing rocket fuels, it’s nearly impossible for humans to explore much beyond Earth,” John Slough, a UW research associate professor of aeronautics and astronautics, said in a statement. “We are hoping to give us a much more powerful source of energy in space that could eventually lead to making interplanetary travel commonplace.”
Previous estimates have found that a roundtrip manned mission to Mars would require about 500 days of space travel. Slough, who is president of MSNW, and his colleagues calculated that a rocket powered by fusion would make 30- and 90-day expeditions to Mars possible. The project is funded in part through NASA’s Innovative Advanced Concepts Program and received a second round of funding under the program in March.
( via foxnews.com )