Lifeboat Foundation

New concepts funded by NASA may seem like science fiction, but they could change how we explore space. Some ideas include a space plane on a Saturn moon, self-growing bricks on Mars and telescopes that reveal invisible aspects of the universe.

An asteroid mining startup called AstroForge is preparing to launch two missions to space this year, Bloomberg reports — inaugural, albeit early attempts to extract valuable resources from space rocks.

AstroForge isn’t looking to actually land on an asteroid and start extracting materials just yet. Its first mission to space, slated to launch aboard a SpaceX rideshare in April, will involve testing out ways of refining platinum from asteroid-like materials in space.

Lonnie Reid is nationally recognized in turbomachinery for his knowledge of internal flow in advanced aerospace propulsion systems. He has a long history of integrating the theoretical and experimental elements of fluid dynamics work to expand the database of compressor and fan design. He has not only demonstrated excellent leadership skills in several positions, including as chief of the Internal Fluid Mechanics Division, but has been influential in recruiting and mentoring the next generation of scientists and engineers.

Lonnie Reid was born on September 5, 1935, in Gastonia, North Carolina. After serving in the U.S. Army, he earned a mechanical engineering degree from Tennessee State University. He joined the NASA Lewis Research Center as a research engineer shortly after graduating in 1961 and spent the next 20 years as both a researcher and manager in the Compressor Section of the Fluid Systems Components Division.

In the early 1960s the group focused on improving the performance of high-speed turbopumps that pumped cryogenic propellants in space vehicles. The pumping of liquid hydrogen in near-boiling conditions, referred to as “cavitation,” was a particular concern. The fluids systems researchers improved pump designs and demonstrated the ability to pump hydrogen in cavitating conditions. These were key contributions to the success of the Centaur and Saturn upper-stage rockets.

The dream of a warp drive, a futuristic propulsion system that could allow us to cover astronomical distances at the speed of light or faster, is still alive.

While the idea has historically been relegated largely to the realms of science fiction, a growing number of engineers are hard at work trying to turn it into a reality.

Take Chance Glenn, an engineering professor and provost of the University of Houston-Victoria, who tells The Debrief that he’s ready to bring early-stage research on a new concept to a lab.

This is the world’s first fully reusable spaceplane that can take off and land from a runway. Aerospace firm Radian Aerospace claim its spaceplane will completely transform travel both in space and around the world. The aircraft, named Radian One, will be a fully reusable, single stage to orbit vehicle that can be turned around and reflown within 48 hours. The firm has raised $27.5 million in seed funding but experts predict it will cost well over $1 billion to develop. Once in orbit, missions could range from once around the Earth, in about 90 minutes, to a full five day cruise. When returning to the Earth, wings allow it to land smoothly on any 10,000ft runway. This would allow it to land at most of the major UK airports. The firm says it will be able to carry out a wide range of functions once in space including taking people and light cargo to low Earth orbit.

University of Central Florida researchers are building on their technology that could pave the way for hypersonic flight, such as travel from New York to Los Angeles in under 30 minutes.

In their latest research published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the researchers discovered a way to stabilize the detonation needed for hypersonic propulsion by creating a special hypersonic reaction chamber for jet engines.

The UCF-developed propulsion system could allow for flight speeds of Mach 6 to 17 and would have applications in air and space travel.

Continue reading “Flying at Speeds up to Mach 17 Could Become Reality” »

Buckle up, this one is fun: Maciej Cegowski has begun what promises to be a multi-part essay arguing against a crewed mission to Mars. It’s called “Why Not Mars,” it’s 8,000 words long, with 66 footnotes, and it sings. I’m not even sure I agree, but I enjoy the hell out of it.

The goal of this essay is to persuade you that we shouldnt send human beings to Mars, at least not anytime soon. Landing on Mars with existing technology would be a destructive, wasteful stunt whose only legacy would be to ruin the greatest natural history experiment in the Solar System. It would no more open a new era of spaceflight than a Phoenician sailor crossing the Atlantic in 500 B.C. would have opened up the New World. And it wouldnt even be that much fun.

A few choice lines:

Saving a few Watts of power here and there could buy the spacecraft a little more time to tell us about interstellar space.

With multiple nations and private companies now setting their sights on missions to the moon, experts say cislunar space — the area between Earth and the moon — could become strategically important, potentially opening up competition over resources and positioning, and even sparking geopolitical conflicts.