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  1. Path: sparky!uunet!van-bc!tradent!lord
  2. From: lord@tradent.wimsey.bc.ca (Jason Cooper)
  3. Newsgroups: sci.space
  4. Subject: Re: *** BUSSARD RAMSCOOP *** 
  5. Message-ID: <BkR5wB2w165w@tradent.wimsey.bc.ca>
  6. Date: Sat, 09 Jan 93 14:12:58 PST
  7. References: <726443349snz@chrism.demon.co.uk>
  8. Organization: TradeNET International Trade Corp.
  9. Lines: 33
  10.  
  11. chris@chrism.demon.co.uk (Chris Marriott) writes:
  12.  
  13. > In article <1993Jan7.124608.1@fnalo.fnal.gov> higgins@fnalo.fnal.gov writes:
  14. > 
  15. > >In article <C0GH9C.DA@zoo.toronto.edu>, henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer
  16. > 
  17. > >Does a Bussard ramjet work *at all* below seriously relativistic
  18. > >velocities?  
  19. > >
  20. > >Seems to me below some large speed, which I recall as
  21. > >something much bigger than .5c, you don't gather enough interstellar
  22. > >hydrogen to keep things stoked.  Admittedly I remember details rather
  23. > >fuzzily, and don't know how to apply them to the "ram-augmented
  24. > >interstellar rocket" Henry is talking about. 
  25. > >
  26. > 
  27. > I don't remember now *where* I read it, but I seem to recall that a
  28. > Bussard Ramjet starts working at speed around about 450km/sec.  Although
  29. > this is an order of magnitude beyond the speeds of current space vehicles,
  30. > it's certainly not unreachable eg, with ion drives.
  31. > -- 
  32. > --------------------------------------------------------------------------
  33. > | Chris Marriott                           | chris@chrism.demon.co.uk    |
  34. > | Warrington, UK                           | BIX: cmarriott              |
  35. > | (Still awaiting inspiration              | CIX: cmarriott              |
  36. > |  for a witty .sig .... )                 | CompuServe: 100113,1140     |
  37. > --------------------------------------------------------------------------
  38. >  
  39.  
  40. Certainly not unreachable at all.  I _believe_ that, working on pure 
  41. kinetic energy, the speed a friend of mine figured out was .017c...
  42.  
  43.                                                 Jason Cooper
  44.