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| A lot of the mechanics of space travel within the solar system can be learned from reading the Space Odyssey books by Arthur C Clarke. In the first book he proposes the use of a nuclear reaction to provide rapid thermal expansion of a fluid to provide thrust. The only need for refueling was to replenish the fluid that is expelled. Part of the key to travel to the outer planets is establishing a means of obtaining water from sources such as the moon and the moons of the outer planets such as Europa orbiting Jupiter. Book 3 also proposes refueling from a comet. Another aspect Clarke discusses at length is the g force created by acceleration. Any acceleration imparts a g force on the occupants of a craft; I believe our current astronauts experience about 3 g's during liftoff from earth. There is a limit to how long you can subject humans to g force of that level but you could balance the acceleration to about an earth 1 g equivalent for any length of time you want. Clarke proposes accelerating for half of a trip and then spin the ship around and decelerating for the second half, thus providing essential normally feeling gravity for the entire trip. | |
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Questions about space travel.
