From Dust to Thrust how we will make fuel on the moon and Mars

[Peartree]

My engineering professional society magazine (IEEE Spectrum) has a nice article about the process of mining and manufacturing oxygen and fuel for future Mars and moon missions here:

https://spectrum.ieee.org/aerospace...obots-to-create-rocket-fuel-from-martian-soil

 

[MClark]

Will have large power requirements, if it can be over come it could work
With 60% of earth solar flux and excavators stirring up dust will make things worse.

M

 

[jlabrasca]

Will have large power requirements, if it can be over come it could work
With 60% of earth solar flux and excavators stirring up dust will make things worse.

M

Easy-peasy -- just put tons of plutonium (back) on top of big chemical rockets...

https://www.scientificamerican.com/...clear-powered-space-missions/#googDisableSync

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...ld-plutonium-with-nowhere-to-go-idUSKBN1HR1KC

 

[aerostadt]

This is what we should be doing especially with regard to making H2/O2 on the moon or Mars or making CH4/O2 or H2/O2 propellants on Mars. Even doing it for surface travel or space travel of robotic devices and probes. The groundwork can be started now. Definitely, use nuclear power for splitting water into H2/O2 or making CH4 from CO2 and H2 on Mars. On splitting water for hydrogen rockets, hydrogen rockets run H2 rich, so there can be plenty of left over O2 for human consumption.

 

[MClark]

The thought of a large reactor full of plutonium being launched on a booster supplied by the lowest bidder is unsettling.
We need a planet to escape to before lighting that candle.

 

[aerostadt]

We are already using plutonium as an energy source to explore Mars and beyond with robots. Just look at Curiosity on Mars and the New Horizons probe beyond Pluto. There are plenty of other examples.

 

[MClark]

Russia's Mars 96 is another example, scattered plutonium across the Southern Hemisphere.

 

[aerostadt]

Without nuclear power we are destined to not travel far beyond this earth. Solar power and chemical power will not cut it.

 

[dhbarr]

Russia's Mars 96 is another example, scattered plutonium across the Southern Hemisphere.

Oh no, 200 grams embedded in remote Chile!

Meanwhile Voyager is still returning data thanks to a couple hundred watts of RTG.