Abstract
Interstellar probes and future interstellar travel will require relativistic rockets. The problem is that such a rocket drive requires that the rocket exhaust velocity from the fuel also is relativistic, since otherwise the rocket thrust is much too small: the total mass of the fuel will be so large that relativistic speeds cannot be reached in a reasonable time and the total mass of the rocket will be extremely large. Until now, no technology was known that would be able to give rocket exhaust at relativistic speed and a high enough momentum for relativistic travel. Here, a useful method for relativistic interstellar propulsion is described for the first time. This method gives exhaust at relativistic speeds and is a factor of at least one hundred better than normal fusion due to its increased energy output from the annihilation-like meson formation processes. It uses ordinary hydrogen as fuel so a return travel is possible after refuelling almost anywhere in space. The central nuclear processes have been studied in around 20 publications, which is considered to be sufficient evidence for the general properties. The nuclear processes give relativistic particles (kaons, pions and muons) by laser-induced annihilation-like processes in ultra-dense hydrogen H(0). The kinetic energy of the mesons is 1300 times larger than the energy of the laser pulse. This method is superior to the laser-sail method by several orders of magnitude and is suitable for large spaceships.
Highlights
Interstellar probes and future interstellar travel will require relativistic rockets, with a slightly arbitrary definition of relativistic meaning rockets moving at velocities above 50% of the velocity of light or > 0.5 c
A method of reaching relativistic exhaust velocities in a spaceship useful for interstellar travel is described. It is based on the well-studied laser-induced annihilation-like nuclear processes in ultra-dense hydrogen H(0) in which both neutral and charged kaons are formed with kinetic energy above 100 MeV for each particle
A complete description of the nuclear processes giving the mesons was recently submitted. The fuel for this drive is ordinary hydrogen, which means that refuelling is possible during interstellar travel, ensuring return travel
Summary
Interstellar probes and future interstellar travel will require relativistic rockets, with a slightly arbitrary definition of relativistic meaning rockets moving at velocities above 50% of the velocity of light or > 0.5 c. For the first time a feasible method for relativistic interstellar propulsion is described in detail It is a at least one hundred times better than ordinary nuclear fusion which is often considered to be the energy generation method to use for interstellar travel. No other rocket drive has solved this problem with refuelling This annihilation-like method is well studied in the laboratory and gives initially fast kaons and pions from protons or deuterons by annihilationlike processes. In the annihilation method described here, each laser pulse gives of the order of 1013 mesons [5] with relativistic velocity This gives an impulse which is up to 3000 times larger than the photon impulse. This annihilation-like method is far superior over other laserbased space propulsion methods
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