So far we can only get as far as the moon or to a space station. That's pretty damn boring. What materials/resources/energy sources would we need to build one that could go to mars, or beyond? I already know NASA is about done building a new one called Orion, but that will only go as far as the moon as well. Which is something we already did years ago. Maybe we will never get past the moon. Maybe we dont have the resources or intellect?
2006-09-28 00:04:02 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
An extraordinary "hyperspace" engine that could make interstellar space travel a reality by flying into other dimensions is being investigated by the United States government.
The hypothetical device, which has been outlined in principle but is based on a controversial theory about the fabric of the universe, could potentially allow a spacecraft to travel to Mars in three hours and journey to a star 11 light years away in just 80 days.
The theoretical engine works by creating an intense magnetic field that, according to ideas first developed by the late scientist Burkhard Heim in the 1950s, would produce a gravitational field and result in thrust for a spacecraft.
Also, if a large enough magnetic field was created, the craft would slip into a different dimension, where the speed of light is faster, allowing incredible speeds to be reached. Switching off the magnetic field would result in the engine reappearing in our current dimension.
The engine would enable spaceships to travel to different solar systems. "If the theory is correct then this is not science fiction, it is science fact," Prof Hauser said.
2006-09-28 00:09:47 · answer #1 · answered by ssrirag2001 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Basically the answer is in two parts. I presume you mean a space vehicle with a human crew.
1. The political will
2. A lot of money
Check out "The Mars Society" on the net. They propose Mars missions that could almost be set up today. No space stations or moon bases needed. But it requires heavy launch rockets like the Saturn V which NASA has almost forgotten how to build.
2006-09-28 02:28:43 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It might take a breakthrough. Certainly rockets don't show much promise of getting much better or cheaper. Maybe a total culture change at NASA, or some private company like SpaceX will lower cost and improve rocket reliability to the point that we can at least get back to the Moon, but other than that, I think it will take some kind of new technology.
2006-09-28 01:52:45 · answer #3 · answered by campbelp2002 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The technology exists to cut the travel time to Mars by 2/3s, thus reducing the trip to roughly one month. The technology is a nuclear-based engine, and has been around for nearly 10 years. I would say that the biggest hamper to NASA is political red-tape and the high expenses involved in the production of specialized equipment. Of course, contractors working for NASA have no problem soaking the organization for as much as they can, as they view it as a cash cow.
2006-09-28 00:16:05 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
maybe they should confer with those rich guys that are planning to give other rich people "rides" into space, in the near future. I believe we have the intellect, because there is a large part of our brain that never gets used in our lifetime. So, why is it there? We haven't "tapped in " to that, yet. Also, I think the answers are simple. But, we haven't evolved, or we are not seeing the big picture, as a species. The humans on this planet are too busy fighting each other, instead of working together.
2006-09-28 00:07:46 · answer #5 · answered by Scorpius59 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The main obstacle in going to places like mars is the time it takes. The difficulty that they need to overcome is that the crew could go mad, but if they put a psychiatrist in as a crew member, they would kill him/her. So, when they invent a sleeping pill that lasts 6 months, they will be able to consider it.
2006-09-28 00:40:06 · answer #6 · answered by rumplestiltskin12357 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They recommend each week from the next day. in the event that they meant the next day, today being Thursday - and that's understood by potential of all worried - they'd desire to declare "the next day," and not "Friday." to declare that ought to be appropriate if it have been purely Wednesday, as an occasion.
2016-12-18 18:26:21 · answer #7 · answered by bunton 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would take about a gabillion dollars, and congressional approval.
2006-09-28 00:12:44 · answer #8 · answered by sixgun 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They already have one but we don't know it exists. They won't tell us.
2006-09-28 00:08:49 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋