Pulsar Fusion
British startup Pulsar Fusion has announced the development and testing of new reusable missiles with engines powered by nuclear fusion.
According to Pulsar Fusion founder and CEO Richard Dinan, testing of the new technology will begin this year, and the first tests in space could be conducted by 2027. At the same time, the company’s representatives did not specify the exact timeframe when the newest spacecraft will be able to make their first flights.
According to one of the experts interviewed by the publication, the first launches may take place at least 10 years from now, and maybe even later. Pulsar Fusion manufactures plasma engines and also develops nuclear-fueled engines. The startup first announced the mysterious Sunbird project on March 6 this year. The concept has been developed in complete secrecy for the past 10 years. Subsequently, the project was fully presented on March 11 at the Space-Comm Expo in London.
It is expected that large orbital satellite docks will be created for these rockets, where they will be stored before deployment and docking with other spacecraft, which will be quickly delivered to their destination in the manner of space tugs. This should significantly reduce the cost of long-distance space missions.
The key to the Sunbird rockets will be the Duel Direct Fusion Drive engines, which, according to Pulsar Fusion, will operate on energy from nuclear fusion. If the technology is successfully implemented, the time of flights to Mars can be cut in half. Representatives of the startup claim that their rockets will be able to deliver probes to Pluto in 4 years instead of 9.5 (the record set by NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft in 2015).
«If we are going to become the species that will actually reach other planets, then exhaust velocity — is perhaps the most important thing In terms of what [theoretically] can be produced at exhaust velocities, fusion is king», — Richard Dinan said.
The use of nuclear fusion technology as a source of unlimited energy on Earth is likely, will begin no earlier than in a few decades. However, according to Richard Dinan, in the case of using this technology in space, everything looks completely different. This is due to the fact that fusion reactions in space do not take place in the same way as on Earth. Traditional fusion reactors — tokamaks try to combine deuterium and tritium to create a constant stream of neutrons, which generates heat and releases additional fuel for further reactions
The developers of the Duel Direct Fusion Drive engines plan to use deuterium and helium-3 as fuel
The reaction will last only limited period of time. The DFD is expected to be able to fuse plasma in space, similar to the way it is done in modern fusion reactors on Earth. Unlike terrestrial fusion reactors, which mimic the space vacuum by using powerful magnetic fields to contain the plasma, the Duel Direct Fusion Drive is expected to be a linear reactor. It will not need to fully contain the plasma inside, since space has a natural vacuum and temperatures reaching absolute zero. This should prevent the reactor from overheating.
Meanwhile, the design features of the Duel Direct Fusion Drive engines are not disclosed. They have not been properly tested either.
A number of scientists, such as MIT professor of astronautics Paulo Lozano, who specializes in rocket engines, are skeptical about Pulsar Fusion’s plans.
«I am skeptical. Merging is complex and has been complex for many reasons and for a long time, especially in compact devices», — Lozano said, declining to pass judgment, however, as he had not seen the technical documentation.
Pulsar Fusion also claims that Sunbird rockets can also be used to power the systems of other spacecraft. Another big advantage of these rockets is that they will require a small amount of fuel. They can be easily refueled and recharged at orbital docking stations.
The length of the missiles is likely to be about 30 meters. They will be covered with thick armor to protect them from cosmic radiation and small meteorites. The production of one such rocket could cost more than $90 million.
Pulsar will conduct the first static tests of the DDFD engine this year inside a pair of giant vacuum chambers recently built at the company’s Bletchley campus. The initial tests will use an inert gas instead of the extremely expensive helium-3 to verify the engine’s theoretical performance.
According to Richard Dinan, his company plans to demonstrate a number of key Sunbird technology components in orbit in 2027If the initial tests are successful, Pulsar will start raising funds to build a full-scale Sunbird prototype and begin attempts to achieve true fusion using helium-3. The company’s CEO notes that it is currently impossible to name a timeframe for the creation of the first Sunbird prototype.
Source: LiveScience