Mini-Magnetospheric Plasma Propulsion (M2P2) seeks the creation of a magnetic wall or bubble (i.e. a magnetosphere) that will intercept the supersonic solar wind which is moving at 300–800 km/s. In so doing, a force of about 1 N will be exerted on the spacecraft by the spacecraft while only requiring a few mN of force to sustain the mini-magnetosphere. Equivalently, the incident solar wind power is about 1 MW while about 1 kW electrical power is required to sustain the system, with about 0.25–0.5 kg being expended per day. This nominal configuration utilizing only solar electric cells for power, the M2P2 will produce a magnetic barrier approximately 15–20 km in radius, which would accelerate a 70–140 kg payload to speeds of about 50–80 km/s. At this speed, missions to the heliopause and beyond can be achieved in under 10 yrs. Design characteristics for a prototype are also described.


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    Title :

    Mini-magnetospheric plasma propulsion (M2P2): High speed propulsion sailing the solar wind


    Contributors:

    Conference:

    SPACE TECHNOLOGY AND APPLICATIONS INTERNATIONAL FORUM - 2000 ; 2000 ; Albuquerque, New Mexico (USA)


    Published in:

    AIP Conference Proceedings ; 504 , 1 ; 962-967


    Publication date :

    2000-01-19


    Size :

    6 pages





    Type of media :

    Conference paper


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English



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