![]() ![]() In the application to deep space missions, various spacecraft concepts from the literature are discussed, and the range of values assumed for the pulse frequency, burn fraction and areal density appropriate for the mission are presented. #STARFINDER ALPHA PDF CODE#This paper gives an overview of the physics of inertial confinement fusion and the interaction of a laser beam with a capsule to include the simulation of a 1D particle-in-cell code calculation to illustrate the effects. One of the innovative methods by which fusion reactions can be ignited is via the impingement of laser beams onto an inertial confinement fusion capsule, imploding it to a thermonuclear state. Such missions would be characterised with ∼kN-MN thrust levels, ∼GW-TW jet powers, ∼kW/kg-MW/kg specific powers. The release of fusion energy from the interaction of two low mass atomic nuclei that are able to overcome the Coulomb barrier offers the potential for ∼1011J/g specific energy release and implies that robotic missions to the nearby stars to distances of ∼5–10 ly may be possible in trip durations of the order of ∼50–100 years, travelling at cruise speeds of the order of ∼0.05–0.15 c. To transport a spacecraft to distances far beyond the solar heliosphere and around the planets of other stars will require advanced space propulsion systems that go beyond the existing technological state of the art. This paper is a submission of the Project Icarus Study Group. In this paper we present the baseline concepts for these missions, which may be iterated to more credible configurations in the future in line with the Project Icarus timescales to complete the final Project Icarus study report by late 2014. We also present the outline for the Icarus Starfinder Probe, designed to go to distances of 10,000-50,000 AU. We introduce the Icarus Pathfinder Probe, a mission to 1,000 AU requiring a cruise velocity of between 50 - 100 AU/year. Fusion technology has also been chosen for the Icarus reference design mission so, given that current predictions of such propulsion systems are still many decades away, we introduce here two interstellar precursor missions which would test key Icarus technologies required for an interstellar mission. The Daedalus solution was to use fusion based propulsion technology predicated on projected advancements in the technology. The Daedalus study showed that the performance of such a probe would require engines with approximately a million seconds or more specific impulse. It is the successor study to the 1970s Project Daedalus conducted by members of The British Interplanetary Society. Project Icarus is a theoretical engineering design study tasked to explore the technical feasibility of sending an unmanned interstellar probe to a nearby star system. ![]()
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