All Hokie, All the Time. Period. Presented by

The Lounge Board

Tafkam Hokie

Joined: 10/07/1999 Posts: 35179
Likes: 13640


Once you get outside Earth's atmosphere


Just use a solar sail for propulsion. When you literally have zero weight and zero resistance as you do in space, the kick of nothing more than photons from the sun is enough to get you going really darned fast if you have a big enough sail to catch them. You accelerate REALLY slowly, but your top speed is around 150,000 mph. There are theories floating around of giving a solar sail a kickstart using lasers, which would get you to top speed in hours instead of three years.

Might need to leave some lasers behind on mars to push you back home, though. Not sure if you can sail into the sun the same way you can sail into the wind.

(In response to this post by bourbonstreet)

Posted: 07/22/2019 at 4:48PM



+1

Insert a Link

Enter the title of the link here:


Enter the full web address of the link here -- include the "http://" part:


Current Thread:
  Most people wouldn't believe it if we did. ** -- MikeVT85 07/22/2019 10:51PM
  We are already there and we have a bar. -- MEHOKIE 07/22/2019 8:12PM
  Yes, if you are speaking only of technical challenges. -- VToncologyNurse 07/22/2019 7:10PM
  Perhaps with the will and the bucks -- Nelsonia Hokie 07/22/2019 4:59PM
  You young whipper snappers. Old news. -- Stork 07/22/2019 4:39PM
  Is that Mr. Hand? ** -- RoswellGAHokie 07/22/2019 5:07PM
  ...aloha Mr Hand ** -- chumley 07/22/2019 6:00PM
  I had a thing for Mrs. Brown ** -- Brown Water 07/22/2019 4:41PM
  She was my Algebra 3 teacher in HS, you rascal. ** -- PhotoHokieNC 07/22/2019 5:14PM
  Herman's Hermits Mrs Brown? -- Stork 07/22/2019 4:45PM
  Deflector shields, naturally ** -- Baltimore Hokie 07/22/2019 8:11PM
  Once you get outside Earth's atmosphere -- Tafkam Hokie 07/22/2019 4:48PM
  That's ludicrous speed. ** -- Nortazhokie 07/22/2019 7:43PM
  That's not current tech. ** -- PhotoHokieNC 07/22/2019 4:51PM
  Thought warp drive was current tech? ** -- EDGEMAN 07/22/2019 6:03PM
  (fold) -------------------->** -- PhotoHokieNC 07/23/2019 05:54AM
  FWIW, that wasn't meant to be a "drop the mic" reply -- Tafkam Hokie 07/23/2019 10:15AM
  Death row? ** -- Brown Water 07/22/2019 7:03PM
  Post of the last night! ** -- PhotoHokieNC 07/23/2019 05:55AM
  The Dirty Dozen ** -- TomTurkey 07/22/2019 7:31PM
  The gene pool -- HokieAl 07/22/2019 4:56PM
  Who knows? Maybe just hold a national lottery. ** -- PhotoHokieNC 07/22/2019 5:15PM
  ...lol, well, yah; maybe it has to be that way, too. ** -- bourbonstreet 07/22/2019 4:47PM
  Simple; warp drive and/or a worm hole ** -- Brown Water 07/22/2019 4:42PM
  First we need to harness the power of tacheon particles. -- Tafkam Hokie 07/22/2019 4:49PM

Tech Sideline is Presented By:

Our Sponsors

vm307