I recently posted a two part articles about a new type of engine that apparently defies the laws of physics. Most of the focus was on what is being called the EM engine. It is a sealed truncated cone that functions as a resonant cavity for microwaves. The unique feature of these engines is that they do not require any propellant. In the post, I briefly mentioned another drive based on similar principles called the Cannae drive.
3-D printing holds great potential for use in space. Instead of having to send up many different components, new components and structures can be directly created in space with 3-D printers.
Part Two of Two Parts (Please read Part One first)
Part One of Two Parts
On September 1st of this year, a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket exploded at Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral. The rocket was intended to carry a one hundred and ninety five million dollar Facebook satellite into orbit to extend the reach of the Internet to unserved areas in Africa. SpaceX lost another rocket earlier this year.
My last three posts have been about a company called Tethers Unlimited and their technologies for space exploration and exploitation. Today's post will be a final look at exciting developments at Tethers Unlimited in the area of building structures in space.
My last blog talked about propulsion systems for CubeSats that used water as a propellant. These thrusters are a commercial product of a company called Tethers Unlimited. They have other products that are being marketed or being developed for space applications. One of these other products involves software defined radios for communication with and between satellites.
My last blog talked about space tethers. One of the pioneer companies researching space tethers is Tethers Unlimited. They have been around for over twenty years and for many of those years they subsisted on occasional grants. In the past few years, their focus has shifted away from space tethers and onto other space technologies that are more in demand.
Over ten years ago, I attended a conference where there was a presentation on tethers for moving things around in space. I was fascinated. We tend to think in terms of powerful rockets for our current space propulsion and maybe someday warp drives that can overcome the speed of light. But here were people talking about using long cables to move things around in space.
There is a lot of interest in asteroid mining these days in the space industry. Huge amounts of important and useful metals could be recovered from one type of asteroid. Another type of asteroid could supply hydrocarbons which can be used in the manufacture of a number of import industrial products such as plastics and medicines.
