|
An expanded Web version of segments seen on CNN Scientists aim to fuel spacecraft launches with lasers
If the space shuttle could be launched using lasers, the savings would be great Could reduce fuel costs, environmental impact
December 12, 1997
Web posted at: 10:47 a.m. EST (1547 GMT)(CNN) -- Thousands of pounds of liquid gas are ignited each time a spacecraft is launched into orbit. The gas load is costly and its burnoff contributes to pollution. Scientists hope a new method will prove to be cheaper and better for the environment: launching rockets with lasers.
Using lasers to propel spacecraft and satellites into orbit may sound like science fiction.
But at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, a team made up of scientists from NASA, the U.S. Air Force, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute has already "launched" a 6-inch, 2-ounce model 50 feet into the air using a high-powered, infrared laser.
Watch Bill Hemmer's entire report as seen on CNN
2 min. 15 sec. VXtreme video
Experiment with model "To our knowledge, this is the first time a vehicle of this nature has been propelled to an altitude like this on a laser beam," said Rensselaer's Leik Myrabo, one of the project team's directors. (
102K/8 sec. AIFF or WAV sound)
The launch system works by concentrating laser beams and aiming them at the craft, which converts their energy into a propulsive fuel. Successfully elevating the model was no small feat, but NASA has set its sights on bigger goals.
"NASA's interest in this technology is for eventually using this to place small satellites into low Earth orbit, and perhaps in the future even maneuvering satellites into higher orbits," said NASA research manager John Cole.
If the space shuttle could be launched using lasers, the savings could be astronomical, explained Franklin Mead of the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory. Because the fuel source stays on the ground, the spacecraft is lighter, saving a tremendous amount of money. It currently costs $10,000 to lift just one pound of payload into space. (
Beamed energy propulsion could also revolutionize the future of air travel on our planet. Myrabo suggested that in the future, a new type of airborne vehicle could pick you up at your home, then go to a laser fuel station and from there, carry you anywhere in the planet in under an hour. (
While laser propulsion may improve spacecraft efficiency and cut costs, the environment could be this technology's biggest benefactor.
"The reason I think this technology is so important... is that it allows us in the future to get rid of the dependency on fossil fuels," Myrabo said. "(Laser) propulsion systems ... are very environmentally friendly."
Related stories:
- Pentagon beams over military laser test - October 20, 1997
- Atom laser has physicists ready to break out champagne - February 6, 1997
Related sites:
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
- U.S. Air Force Propulsion Directorate
- High Energy Laser Systems Test Facility
- Laser Propulsion Research Projects
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.
|
Sound off on our message boards
You said it... |
|
© 1997 Cable News Network, Inc.
All Rights Reserved.