Friday, March 18, 2005
A First Step Towards Interstellar Flight?
Do you dream of going "where no man has gone before?" I think most of us have but interstellar travel, as opposed to interplanetary travel, appears to be a technological impossibility. Without planet sized amounts of fuel, it would take so long we would have to breed new generations in space just to make the trip.
But check our this story from Drudge. Apparently the Russians are experimenting with 'solar sails.' I wonlt bore you with the details but it is essentially a way to move a space craft through space using the sun, and therefore, not carrying enormous amounts of fuel. Now of course, there is a noted absence of solar radiation in interstellar space, but at least this is a start at lowering fuel demands.
But check our this story from Drudge. Apparently the Russians are experimenting with 'solar sails.' I wonlt bore you with the details but it is essentially a way to move a space craft through space using the sun, and therefore, not carrying enormous amounts of fuel. Now of course, there is a noted absence of solar radiation in interstellar space, but at least this is a start at lowering fuel demands.
