Subject:
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Re: LRS
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Newsgroups:
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lugnet.space
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Date:
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Fri, 22 Mar 2002 04:01:42 GMT
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Viewed:
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527 times
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In lugnet.space, Mark Neumann writes:
>
> > Actually, if your LRS was an atmospheric craft, and it schwaaaaaaad, it
> > wouldn't go anywere. To be realistic, an ion engine produces as much thrust
> > in weight as a piece of paper,
>
> Really? I didn't know that. But really as far as I'm concerned I don't
> care how it works, just as long as it sounds real cool. :) • That is the point, isn't it. :-)
>
> > while a rocket uses thrust equal to the
> > weight of a couple warehouses full of paper. Ion engines are next to
> > useless on planets. (I did a science report on them for school)
>
> So how do they work?
Well, zenon (a gas) is shot out outof the inside wall of a chamber, along
with electrons going through a cathode(or something like that) tube. The
electrons knock of an electron from the zeneon gas, changing it from a
stable, neutral ion to a positive ion. The positive zenon gas is then passed
between two grids, on negative and one positive. Its accelerated very fast.
After it goes through the grids, its shot out through space. One of Newtons
Laws of Gravity says that every action must have a reaction, so as the the
zenon is flying out the back of the engine, the engine moves forward as a
reaction.
Here's a little diagram:
_____________________________
|o|
. o o | | o
_ o .o | | o o
_. |o|
o . o .o | |
______________ | | o
An ion engine moves a little mass very fast, while a rocket engine uses alot
of mass slowly. However, on a planet with lots of gravity, the weight of
the mass used is important, and while ion engines are very efficient in
space, on Earth they are simply not powerful enough.
John Kruer
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Message is in Reply To:
 | | Re: LRS
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| (...) Really? I didn't know that. But really as far as I'm concerned I don't care how it works, just as long as it sounds real cool. :) (...) So how do they work? (22 years ago, 22-Mar-02, to lugnet.space)
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