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Fusion powered human transport to Mars (UWFR94)In the future, two important technological dreams will have become reality: fusion will be a viable power source, and human settlement on Mars will be feasible, desirable, and even necessary. Merging these two concepts is especially attractive for the aerospace engineer because of the high specific power that will be possible with fusion (on the order 10 kW/kg). The UWFR94, a large, fusion-powered, human-transport ship, is designed to transport 100 passengers between earth and Mars in approximately thirty days. This relatively short transit time, which mitigates the need for artificial gravity, is made possible by a Polywell inertial electrostatic fusion reactor capable of 20 kW/kg. The mass of each reactor is 37 metric tons and the fuel used is (3)He-(3)He. The electricity generated drives the propulsion system, composed of nine ion thrusters and 780 tons of xenon propellant. The payload consists of three independent, identical cylinders housing the crew, and has a mass of approximately 400 tons. The aluminum cylinders' radius and length are 3 and 12 meters, respectively, with a thickness of 6 cm (15 cm in the solar flare safe rooms). Atmospheric reentry is avoided by constructing and repairing the UWFR94 in space, and by transferring crew and cargo to shuttle-like vehicles for transportation to the planet upon arrival.
Document ID
19950006228
Acquisition Source
Legacy CDMS
Document Type
Contractor Report (CR)
Authors
Cappellari, John
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, MD, United States)
Grota, Susan
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, MD, United States)
Hagedorn, David
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, MD, United States)
Hirai, Yoshi
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, MD, United States)
Remmel, Mark
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, MD, United States)
Schmidt, Deanna
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, MD, United States)
Sveum, Matt
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, MD, United States)
Wandow, Helena
(Universities Space Research Association Columbia, MD, United States)
Date Acquired
September 6, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1994
Subject Category
Plasma Physics
Report/Patent Number
NAS 1.26:197184
NASA-CR-197184
Accession Number
95N12641
Funding Number(s)
CONTRACT_GRANT: NASW-4435
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.
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