Scientists have unveiled something that might make deep space travel much faster.
Fez – Russian scientists have built a new plasma rocket engine that could make space travel much faster.
The engine, made by Rosatom researchers, could take astronauts to Mars in just 30 to 60 days instead of a year.
How it works
The engine uses a special kind of electric power called plasma. It runs in short bursts and can reach an average power of 300kW.
This makes it much faster than regular rocket engines. Scientists say it could push a spacecraft to speeds of around 195,000 miles per hour.
According to World Nuclear News Alexey Voronov, a top scientist at Rosatom, said that long trips to Mars are dangerous.
Space radiation can harm astronauts. Shorter trips would make space travel safer.
He explained that this prototype is a big step. Scientists need to test it to see if it works well in space and how much it will cost to produce.
They are building a special lab to test the engine. The lab includes a large vacuum chamber that is 14 meters long and 4 meters wide.
This chamber will create space-like conditions for experiments.
Mars is about 140 million miles away from Earth. Right now, trips to Mars take nearly a year.
Reports suggest that the U.S. and the European Space Agency have also been working on ways to make space travel faster.
According to the Russian newspaper Izvestia, the new engine has a thrust of about 6N.
Scientists say it can push charged particles, electrons, and protons, at speeds of 100 km per second.
This could help spacecraft travel not only to Mars but also beyond the solar system.
What’s next?
A plasma rocket engine works using electricity. It has two electrodes that pass charged particles between them.
It has a magnetic field that pushes the particles out when a high voltage is applied, creating thrust.
The new engine will still need a traditional rocket to launch into space. Scientists hope to have a working model ready by 2030.
If successful, this technology could change space travel forever.
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