Skip to main content
Space Exploration

Return to Answer

added 48 characters in body
Source Link
peterh
peterh
  • 3.3k
  • 4
  • 28
  • 41

The current situation about the fusion

Today, there is no working fusion reactor today which could produce energy. The current seemingly best prototype is the ITER reactor, which still won't produce energy for the European energy network, but it will produce at least more energy (from fusion) as it takes (for maintaining plasma). It is currently under production, the first plasma reaction is planned for 2025 (which is already delay to the originally planned 2018).

After the ITER demonstrated the capability to produce fusion energy, the next planned reactor (DEMO, existing currently as preliminary plans) will already produce electricity for the continental power system. This is estimated for 2040.

Note, the ITER tokamak weighs 23000 tons, and there is no reason to think that the DEMO will be lighter. Compare this to the ISS, which is the most massive thing currently in space, with its 450 tons.

Thus, after the DEMO is ready and working, probably it will require further decades to miniaturize the reactor and making it space-capable.

Note, the only currently working industrial fusion doesn't fuse Hydrogen. It uses Lithium and Deuterium, produces partially Tritium from them, and then uses this Tritium to create fusion.

Current situation about the nuclear-capable space propulsion

The mass of the decay products of the nuclear energy is very small, compared to the chemical rockets. This rules out the current chemical rocket-like solutions (although there are some ideas even for that).

Having the very high energy level and the very small fuel mass, ion drives are the most obvious choice. Between them, VASIMR has the most fruitful prototype.

VASIMR is essentially a very effective ion engine. If it gets (electrical) energy and it has fuel, it can work with an effectivity around 70%. It can get its electric input from batteries, from solar power or from a fusion reactor.

There is currently a working VASIMR prototype which could reduce the orbital boost costs of the ISS to the 5% of the today, and there was a plan to install it on the ISS in 2015. The NASA stepped back from it in the last moment, on unclear reasons. Their this decision makes probable, that the ISS will be simply crashed into the Pacific sometimes in the 2020s, for example on cost reasons.

The company behind the VASIMRcompany behind the VASIMR still works for the NASA, although it is dubious how can they do any useful, considering that currently there is no plan to use VASIMR anywhere.

A fusion reactor, converting Lithium and Deuterium to Helium4, Hydrogen and energy, driving VASIMR drives seem the most realistic outcome.

It couldn't run before 2060 even in the best scenario.

In the latest decades, the developments in the space exploration, the actually realized scenarios were more near to the worst.

The current situation about the fusion

Today, there is no working fusion reactor today which could produce energy. The current seemingly best prototype is the ITER reactor, which still won't produce energy for the European energy network, but it will produce at least more energy (from fusion) as it takes (for maintaining plasma). It is currently under production, the first plasma reaction is planned for 2025 (which is already delay to the originally planned 2018).

After the ITER demonstrated the capability to produce fusion energy, the next planned reactor (DEMO, existing currently as preliminary plans) will already produce electricity for the continental power system. This is estimated for 2040.

Note, the ITER tokamak weighs 23000 tons, and there is no reason to think that the DEMO will be lighter. Compare this to the ISS, which is the most massive thing currently in space, with its 450 tons.

Thus, after the DEMO is ready and working, probably it will require further decades to miniaturize the reactor and making it space-capable.

Note, the only currently working industrial fusion doesn't fuse Hydrogen. It uses Lithium and Deuterium, produces partially Tritium from them, and then uses this Tritium to create fusion.

Current situation about the nuclear-capable space propulsion

The mass of the decay products of the nuclear energy is very small, compared to the chemical rockets. This rules out the current chemical rocket-like solutions (although there are some ideas even for that).

Having the very high energy level and the very small fuel mass, ion drives are the most obvious choice. Between them, VASIMR has the most fruitful prototype.

VASIMR is essentially a very effective ion engine. If it gets (electrical) energy and it has fuel, it can work with an effectivity around 70%. It can get its electric input from batteries, from solar power or from a fusion reactor.

There is currently a working VASIMR prototype which could reduce the orbital boost costs of the ISS to the 5% of the today, and there was a plan to install it on the ISS in 2015. The NASA stepped back from it in the last moment, on unclear reasons. Their this decision makes probable, that the ISS will be simply crashed into the Pacific sometimes in the 2020s, for example on cost reasons.

The company behind the VASIMR still works for the NASA, although it is dubious how can they do any useful, considering that currently there is no plan to use VASIMR anywhere.

A fusion reactor, converting Lithium and Deuterium to Helium4, Hydrogen and energy, driving VASIMR drives seem the most realistic outcome.

It couldn't run before 2060 even in the best scenario.

In the latest decades, the developments in the space exploration, the actually realized scenarios were more near to the worst.

The current situation about the fusion

Today, there is no working fusion reactor today which could produce energy. The current seemingly best prototype is the ITER reactor, which still won't produce energy for the European energy network, but it will produce at least more energy (from fusion) as it takes (for maintaining plasma). It is currently under production, the first plasma reaction is planned for 2025 (which is already delay to the originally planned 2018).

After the ITER demonstrated the capability to produce fusion energy, the next planned reactor (DEMO, existing currently as preliminary plans) will already produce electricity for the continental power system. This is estimated for 2040.

Note, the ITER tokamak weighs 23000 tons, and there is no reason to think that the DEMO will be lighter. Compare this to the ISS, which is the most massive thing currently in space, with its 450 tons.

Thus, after the DEMO is ready and working, probably it will require further decades to miniaturize the reactor and making it space-capable.

Note, the only currently working industrial fusion doesn't fuse Hydrogen. It uses Lithium and Deuterium, produces partially Tritium from them, and then uses this Tritium to create fusion.

Current situation about the nuclear-capable space propulsion

The mass of the decay products of the nuclear energy is very small, compared to the chemical rockets. This rules out the current chemical rocket-like solutions (although there are some ideas even for that).

Having the very high energy level and the very small fuel mass, ion drives are the most obvious choice. Between them, VASIMR has the most fruitful prototype.

VASIMR is essentially a very effective ion engine. If it gets (electrical) energy and it has fuel, it can work with an effectivity around 70%. It can get its electric input from batteries, from solar power or from a fusion reactor.

There is currently a working VASIMR prototype which could reduce the orbital boost costs of the ISS to the 5% of the today, and there was a plan to install it on the ISS in 2015. The NASA stepped back from it in the last moment, on unclear reasons. Their this decision makes probable, that the ISS will be simply crashed into the Pacific sometimes in the 2020s, for example on cost reasons.

The company behind the VASIMR still works for the NASA, although it is dubious how can they do any useful, considering that currently there is no plan to use VASIMR anywhere.

A fusion reactor, converting Lithium and Deuterium to Helium4, Hydrogen and energy, driving VASIMR drives seem the most realistic outcome.

It couldn't run before 2060 even in the best scenario.

In the latest decades, the developments in the space exploration, the actually realized scenarios were more near to the worst.

Source Link
peterh
peterh
  • 3.3k
  • 4
  • 28
  • 41

The current situation about the fusion

Today, there is no working fusion reactor today which could produce energy. The current seemingly best prototype is the ITER reactor, which still won't produce energy for the European energy network, but it will produce at least more energy (from fusion) as it takes (for maintaining plasma). It is currently under production, the first plasma reaction is planned for 2025 (which is already delay to the originally planned 2018).

After the ITER demonstrated the capability to produce fusion energy, the next planned reactor (DEMO, existing currently as preliminary plans) will already produce electricity for the continental power system. This is estimated for 2040.

Note, the ITER tokamak weighs 23000 tons, and there is no reason to think that the DEMO will be lighter. Compare this to the ISS, which is the most massive thing currently in space, with its 450 tons.

Thus, after the DEMO is ready and working, probably it will require further decades to miniaturize the reactor and making it space-capable.

Note, the only currently working industrial fusion doesn't fuse Hydrogen. It uses Lithium and Deuterium, produces partially Tritium from them, and then uses this Tritium to create fusion.

Current situation about the nuclear-capable space propulsion

The mass of the decay products of the nuclear energy is very small, compared to the chemical rockets. This rules out the current chemical rocket-like solutions (although there are some ideas even for that).

Having the very high energy level and the very small fuel mass, ion drives are the most obvious choice. Between them, VASIMR has the most fruitful prototype.

VASIMR is essentially a very effective ion engine. If it gets (electrical) energy and it has fuel, it can work with an effectivity around 70%. It can get its electric input from batteries, from solar power or from a fusion reactor.

There is currently a working VASIMR prototype which could reduce the orbital boost costs of the ISS to the 5% of the today, and there was a plan to install it on the ISS in 2015. The NASA stepped back from it in the last moment, on unclear reasons. Their this decision makes probable, that the ISS will be simply crashed into the Pacific sometimes in the 2020s, for example on cost reasons.

The company behind the VASIMR still works for the NASA, although it is dubious how can they do any useful, considering that currently there is no plan to use VASIMR anywhere.

A fusion reactor, converting Lithium and Deuterium to Helium4, Hydrogen and energy, driving VASIMR drives seem the most realistic outcome.

It couldn't run before 2060 even in the best scenario.

In the latest decades, the developments in the space exploration, the actually realized scenarios were more near to the worst.