3 ms·
Might regenerative braking at the destination star be possible? If so, nearly all of the stored energy could be depleted in acceleration, leaving just enough to
by lovemenot 9y ago
Might regenerative braking at the destination star be possible? If so, nearly all of the stored energy could be depleted in acceleration, leaving just enough to bootstrap deceleration.
- seanmcdirmid 9y agoHow would regenerative braking work in space without friction?
- ben_w 9y agoYes, but. Yes, you can get energy out of slowing down with any conductor passing through a magnetic field, but spaceflight uses so much energy that current electrical energy storage is essentially as irrelevant to propulsion as clockwork would be.
- lovemenot 9y agoSo I think you are saying that only nuclear has the required energy density for acceleration. Even so, it would be nice to carry much less of the stuff, or a faster decaying material, if regenerative braking provides enough power to almost completely power the magnetosphere upon arrival.
- ben_w 9y agoMainly I’m saying batteries currently suck. If you can make a nuclear battery (Hafnium isomer, perhaps), that would work, but it would probably also make M2P2 obsolete.