Mini-Mag Orion (MMO), or Miniature Magnetic Orion, is a proposed type of
spacecraft propulsion
Spacecraft propulsion is any method used to accelerate spacecraft and artificial satellites. In-space propulsion exclusively deals with propulsion systems used in the vacuum of space and should not be confused with space launch or atmospheric ...
based on the
Project Orion nuclear propulsion system. The Mini-Mag Orion system achieves propulsion by compressing fissile material in a magnetic field, a
Z-pinch
In fusion power research, the Z-pinch (zeta pinch) is a type of plasma confinement system that uses an electric current in the plasma to generate a magnetic field that compresses it (see pinch). These systems were originally referred to simp ...
, until
fission
Fission, a splitting of something into two or more parts, may refer to:
* Fission (biology), the division of a single entity into two or more parts and the regeneration of those parts into separate entities resembling the original
* Nuclear fissio ...
occurs. This fission reaction propels the craft. MMO should be able to propel 100 tons to
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin atmos ...
within 3 months or to
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest in the Solar System. It is a gas giant with a mass more than two and a half times that of all the other planets in the Solar System combined, but slightly less than one-thousandt ...
in about one year.
History
In June 2000,
Andrews Space concluded a Phase I
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeedi ...
Small Business Innovation Research
The Small Business Innovation Research (or SBIR) program is a U.S. government funding program, coordinated by the Small Business Administration, intended to help certain small businesses conduct research and development (R&D). Funding takes the f ...
project on an iteration of the original
Project Orion concept termed MagOrion. MagOrion introduced the use of a large, 2 km diameter, superconducting ring to interact with the plasma debris of the nuclear explosive pulses; replacing the mechanically dampened pusher plate of the original Project Orion concept. This enabled specific impulses above 10,000 seconds with initial system Thrust to Weight ratios from 0.2 to 10. The study also identified several potential show-stoppers for MagOrion; the brittleness of superconductors and their susceptibility to critical self-field limitations, the technical challenge of constructing a 2 km diameter superconductor in space as well as the political difficulty of launching a device capable of ejecting nuclear explosives at high repetition rates. These concerns led to the next iteration in the Orion family of designs, Mini-MagOrion (MMO), which are discussed here. The MMO program was funded jointly by
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research.
NASA was established in 1958, succeedi ...
and the
US Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and manages the research and development of nuclear power and nuclear weapons in the United State ...
(DOE)
Concept
The Mini-MagOrion (MMO) concept attempts to address the identified short-comings of the
MagOrion concept. The MMO design adds two important aspects to the family of Orion concepts. First, the use of magnetic compression of the fissile targets enables the utilization of much smaller explosions, 50-500 GJ yield vs. 20,000 GJ, which are triggered by an external device and thus cannot be projected as a potential weapon. Second, using smaller yield explosions allowed for the replacement of the large superconducting ring with a more sophisticated assembly of several coils arranged into a nozzle like configuration.
Testing
Andrews Space worked together with the US
Sandia National Laboratories
Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), also known as Sandia, is one of three research and development laboratories of the United States Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). Headquartered in Kirtland Air Force Bas ...
to conduct several experiments that demonstrated key components of the MMO design. The first experiment, conducted on the SNL Saturn machine, showed that mylar, in the form of plastic foil, could be used as a conductor to direct the current into the fuel pellet which would then set up the imploding magnetic field to compress it.
The second test was conducted on the SNL
Z-Machine, the world's most powerful x-ray emitter and z-pinch at that time. The experiment was intended to measure the relationship between the applied power pulse and the resulting compression ratio of the target. The experiments did not use fissile material, but a number of inert heavy elements, gold, tungsten, etc., to avoid contamination of the facility. The results were inconclusive due to challenges with the measurement equipment used to determine the compression ratio.
Media
The July 2003 issue of Aerospace Engineering, published by SAE Aerospace, had a brief article about the Mini-MagOrion program and the pulse power experiments at Sandia National Laboratories.
[Aerospace Engineering, SAEAerospace, July 2003, page 19, written by Kevin Jost] Due to its close relationship to the original
Project Orion, the MMO concept continues to be discussed throughout the blogosphere.
References
External links
* Ralph Ewig, Dana Andrews, , AIAA JPC July 2003.
* Dana G. Andrews, Roger X. Lenard
"Proposed Follow-on Mini-Mag Orion Pulsed Propulsion Concept" 42nd AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE Joint Propulsion Conference & Exhibit, 9–12 July 2006.
* {{Cite journal
, last1 = Lenard , first1 = Roger X.
, last2 = Andrews , first2 = Dana G.
, doi = 10.1016/j.actaastro.2007.01.052
, title = Use of Mini-Mag Orion and superconducting coils for near-term interstellar transportation
, journal = Acta Astronautica
, volume = 61
, issue = 1-6
, pages = 450–458
, date=June–August 2007
, bibcode = 2007AcAau..61..450L
* Ralph Ewig
"Mini-MagOrion" personal website of the program principal investigator
Nuclear spacecraft propulsion
Proposed spacecraft