NetNews Usenet Archive 1993 #1/NN_1993_1.iso/spool/sci/space/19079

Internet Message Format | 1993-01-09 | 1.5 KB

Path: sparky!uunet!van-bc!tradent!lord
From: [e-mail] (Jason Cooper)
Newsgroups: sci.space
Subject: ** BUSSARD RAMSCOOP **
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Date: Fri, 08 Jan 93 06:57:17 PST
Organization: TradeNET International Trade Corp.
Lines: 20

Thought I'd just do a blanket post on what I've seen here rather than
reply to each individual message.  Firstly, do we have a verdict of anyu
sort on whether or not antimatter-matter collisions are a good way to
produce the heat required for fusion?  Or might it be best to boost the
ramjet up to .017c (where the kinetic energy of the ship should roughly
equal the energy required for deuterium-deuterium (or was that d-p?)
fusion) using a more conventional method like nuclear pod propulsion,
such as the Orion starship?  Secondly, if it _IS_ a good way to produce
heat on the incoming H, does anyone out there have any idea how a
_smaller_ version of something that would create that kind of antimatter
(I figure it's probably better to produce it than to carry it) per second
would be like?  I'm not looking for first-draft plans here, just concepts
that may be used to DESCRIBE what such a device would look like and how
(if necessary) it might pipe protons out of the stream.  Thirdly, if we
were to STORE the antimatter, how would it be stored?  I have seen methods
for plasma, but can't seem to find antimatter storage.

Any response welcome...

                                                Jason Cooper