10
votes
Accepted
Lunar nuclear power system - how can hydrogen generated on the Moon be liquefied?
How would you cool and liquefy this hydrogen on the Moon?
I guess one would have to do a serious study to find out for sure which way is more suitable in a given scenario, but I think passive cooling ...
- 149k
8
votes
Lunar nuclear power system - how can hydrogen generated on the Moon be liquefied?
Cryogenic cooling typically works by cooling pressurised gas, releasing the pressure to reach even lower temperatures. The cooling itself uses boiling of some other gas with a higher boiling point (...
5
votes
Is lunar exploration going to need a whole heck of a lot of RTGs? If so, have they started firing up the RTG-making reactors yet?
The previous answer is great. However as noted in the comments there is a 2 week long night on the moon. Yes yes even though the daytime is also quite long, the nighttime is long enough to disrupt ...
- 1,665
5
votes
best way to generate electricity on any planet's dark side
You can read my answer here for more information.
But in short, Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators or RTGs for short are a good way of producing energy and are independent of light. Fission ...
- 1,665
4
votes
Accepted
How would we power probes or spaceships over hundered or thousands of years?
Americium-241 is a RTG candidate for longer interstellar missions. It has a much lower power density (a quarter of Pu-238) but it’s half-life is 432 years (vs 88yr for Pu-238). If you want it to ...
- 15.3k
3
votes
best way to generate electricity on any planet's dark side
What options are available for generating electricity in a space colony if it is at the planet's darkest point all year around without help from nearby outposts?
Starlight and cosmic rays: If we find ...
- 149k
3
votes
Electric sails power consumption
The original concept was conceptually simpler
An artistic rendering of the current concept shows as spinning spacecraft with radial tethers again with an electron gun ensuring the sail has a positive ...
- 312
1
vote
Power supply for StarShip?
Earlier renders of StarShip (BFR) Display solar 'wings'
Final configuration / design will not be settled on for some time. Suffice to say solar panels will definitely required and there are multiple ...
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