Serpo
17th May 2012, 02:56 AM
"QUANTUM SHOT" #485
Link (http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2008/10/project-orion-powered-by-atomic-bomb.html) - article by Avi Abrams
The Ultimate 1950s Space Technology, which almost made it to Saturn
Obviously, "almost" is a key word here, but apparently NASA still has "small secret contingency plan division" which is dedicated to preserving "Orion" nuclear propulsion technology - and reviving it in case of a killer asteroid threat.
http://lh5.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_93Lb1JWI/AAAAAAAAhB8/YgZmyEb3W-o/s640/leaving-earth-1l.jpg (http://www.bisbos.com/)
(image credit: Adrian Mann (http://www.bisbos.com/))
So what exactly is this "Project Orion" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Orion_%28nuclear_propulsion%29) - the most radical propulsion technology for kick-ass space missions? No, it's not the NASA's future space capsule ("Apollo-on-steroids", some may say) - but a proposed colossal nuclear-bomb-powered rocket from 1958:
http://lh6.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_95MXmcDI/AAAAAAAAhDQ/IDZU01UmI24/s640/6356uryjgykhj.jpg (http://www.nuclearspace.com/movie_projectORION.aspx)
(images by Rhys Taylor (http://www.nuclearspace.com/movie_projectORION.aspx), see the full animation of "Orion" launch here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1vKMTYa40A))
Nuclear Propulsion: Getting More Miles Per Gallon
... or rather, giving you maximum payload per launch:
http://lh6.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_9yXO9lrI/AAAAAAAAg_g/9KFs_VtPfq0/s640/345yerhfgnvbn.jpg (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:NASA-project-orion-artist.jpg)
http://lh6.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_90Cx69ZI/AAAAAAAAhAc/WYruqbRDUpk/s640/345yerhfgjgh.jpg (http://lh6.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_90Cx69ZI/AAAAAAAAhAc/WYruqbRDUpk/s1600-h/345yerhfgjgh.jpg)
(image credit: NASA (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:NASA-project-orion-artist.jpg))
The ultimate BIG technology, conceived in the 1950s to go to Saturn, Jupiter, and beyond... was powered by a row upon row of controlled, directed nuclear blasts....
http://lh5.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_9yzeqWdI/AAAAAAAAg_4/7pBwYCQt7es/s640/3456e5ytfrgjghkhj.jpg (http://lh5.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_9yzeqWdI/AAAAAAAAg_4/7pBwYCQt7es/s1600-h/3456e5ytfrgjghkhj.jpg)
(Collection of George Dyson)
Here is a hugely entertaining talk video (http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/george_dyson_on_project_orion.html) by George Dyson about the development and the current state of Project Orion:
more.......
http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2008/10/project-orion-powered-by-atomic-bomb.html
Link (http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2008/10/project-orion-powered-by-atomic-bomb.html) - article by Avi Abrams
The Ultimate 1950s Space Technology, which almost made it to Saturn
Obviously, "almost" is a key word here, but apparently NASA still has "small secret contingency plan division" which is dedicated to preserving "Orion" nuclear propulsion technology - and reviving it in case of a killer asteroid threat.
http://lh5.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_93Lb1JWI/AAAAAAAAhB8/YgZmyEb3W-o/s640/leaving-earth-1l.jpg (http://www.bisbos.com/)
(image credit: Adrian Mann (http://www.bisbos.com/))
So what exactly is this "Project Orion" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Orion_%28nuclear_propulsion%29) - the most radical propulsion technology for kick-ass space missions? No, it's not the NASA's future space capsule ("Apollo-on-steroids", some may say) - but a proposed colossal nuclear-bomb-powered rocket from 1958:
http://lh6.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_95MXmcDI/AAAAAAAAhDQ/IDZU01UmI24/s640/6356uryjgykhj.jpg (http://www.nuclearspace.com/movie_projectORION.aspx)
(images by Rhys Taylor (http://www.nuclearspace.com/movie_projectORION.aspx), see the full animation of "Orion" launch here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V1vKMTYa40A))
Nuclear Propulsion: Getting More Miles Per Gallon
... or rather, giving you maximum payload per launch:
http://lh6.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_9yXO9lrI/AAAAAAAAg_g/9KFs_VtPfq0/s640/345yerhfgnvbn.jpg (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:NASA-project-orion-artist.jpg)
http://lh6.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_90Cx69ZI/AAAAAAAAhAc/WYruqbRDUpk/s640/345yerhfgjgh.jpg (http://lh6.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_90Cx69ZI/AAAAAAAAhAc/WYruqbRDUpk/s1600-h/345yerhfgjgh.jpg)
(image credit: NASA (http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:NASA-project-orion-artist.jpg))
The ultimate BIG technology, conceived in the 1950s to go to Saturn, Jupiter, and beyond... was powered by a row upon row of controlled, directed nuclear blasts....
http://lh5.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_9yzeqWdI/AAAAAAAAg_4/7pBwYCQt7es/s640/3456e5ytfrgjghkhj.jpg (http://lh5.ggpht.com/abramsv/SO_9yzeqWdI/AAAAAAAAg_4/7pBwYCQt7es/s1600-h/3456e5ytfrgjghkhj.jpg)
(Collection of George Dyson)
Here is a hugely entertaining talk video (http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/george_dyson_on_project_orion.html) by George Dyson about the development and the current state of Project Orion:
more.......
http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2008/10/project-orion-powered-by-atomic-bomb.html