激光等离子体航天推进

 本文综述了用脉冲激光等离子体发生器为航天推进动力的可能方案。由外燃式推力器起飞,磁流体风扇升空,等离子体火箭加速。发射同样的有效载荷入轨,起飞重量只及目前航天飞机的1/20,携带燃料只需目前的1/40。先进的航天飞机将加速太阳能站和整个国民经济的发展。

AEROSPACE PROPULSION USING LASER- DRIVEN PLASMA GENERATOR

By 2020, Flights into low earth orbit will be as common as intercontinental flights are today. Because of its heavy mass of propellant carried, today's space shuttle can not meet the needs of the busy aerospace transportation in next century. For developing advanced aerospace vehicles, new technologies should be adopted as far as possible. Reviewing the recent advances in energy sources, laser techniques, and electric propulsions, an effective way for reducing the propellant carried is indicated. It is suggested that the new vehicle will be powered by remote pulsed laser beam. The laser propulsion engine will be of variable cycle type using plasma generator and the vehicle will be of rotary plate type.It will be taken off by external radiated-heated VTOL thruster, lifted by magneto hydrodynamic fanjet, and accelerated by rotary rocket pulsejet. The mechanism and performance of such engines as well as their development and perspectives are introduced. Sending the same payload into low earth orbit, the vehicle mass at liftoff will be 1/20 as that of today's space shuttleis, and the propellant carried only 1/40 as that of today's shuttle.