Clarke Stations and mercurian mass-drivers: energy for large-scale transportation systems

Conference · Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1985

OSTI ID:5837151

Jones, E M

Three-week voyages across 1 AU could be made in large sailing craft propelled by microwaves generated at power stations operating at 0.1 AU from the sun. The power stations could be built of mercurian materials launched by mass driver to building sites in solar orbit. A Clarke Station 28 km in radius could generate 64 TW of microwaves and support the operation of a 1000-tonne, 1000-passenger vessel. The ability to build near-sun power stations of mercurian materials would not only support high-speed transport but solar system development in general.

• Research Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-36
• OSTI ID: 5837151
• Report Number(s): LA-UR-85-1128; CONF-8505136-1; ON: DE85009607
• Resource Relation: Conference: Conference on space manufacturing, Princeton, NJ, USA, 8 May 1985
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

42 ENGINEERING
MICROWAVE RADIATION
RADIATION PRESSURE
SPACE TRANSPORT
COST
SPACE VEHICLES
PROPULSION
FEASIBILITY STUDIES
MICROWAVE AMPLIFIERS
SAILS
AMPLIFIERS
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELECTRONIC EQUIPMENT
EQUIPMENT
MICROWAVE EQUIPMENT
RADIATIONS
TRANSPORT
VEHICLES
420100* - Engineering- General Engineering- (-1987)