A new inertial-electrostatic-fusion direct electric power source can be used to drive a relativistic e-beam to heat propellant. The resulting system is shown to yield specific impulse and thrust/mass ratio 2-3 orders of magnitude larger than from other advanced propulsion concepts. This QED system can be applied to aerospace vehicles from air-breathing to near-interstellar flight. Examples are given for Earth/Mars flight missions, that show transit times of 40 d with 20 percent payload in single-stage vehicles.


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    Title :

    The QED engine spectrum - Fusion-electric propulsion for air-breathing to interstellar flight


    Contributors:

    Conference:

    AIAA, SAE, ASME, and ASEE, Joint Propulsion Conference and Exhibit ; 1993 ; Monterey, CA, United States


    Publication date :

    1993-06-01


    Type of media :

    Conference paper


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English