Sunday, April 08, 2007
Space Exploration
One advantage in going to the moon (helium 3 moon map here) may be helium 3 mining for use in neutron bombs and cheap nuclear fusion plants. The first can kill us all, the second provide energy for the next few centuries if we are lucky. Pravda in 2005 for example, said "A few kilograms of the lunar substance will be enough to start a thermonuclear electric power station". And many like Kulcinski believe nuclear fusion reactors, which will likely be hopefully much better that fission reactors as an energy source, may well be possible in relatively few years.
US trends in federal spending on research in the last few decades have not been good. In a world where China and India are steadily stepping up their government R&D spending, this is a bad trend. To quote Professor Kulcinski, “The US is coasting on our past research and cheap labor.” NASA doesn’t trust DOE to fund and get a helium-3 reactor working if they commit the resources to get the helium-3. Hopefully access to the helium-3 will come as a byproduct of returning to the Moon, and as the DOE sees the return to the Moon advancing, they will be willing to put more money into helium-3 fusion research.
Tritium required for strategic purposes has to be produced artificially, and there are two ways to do this, the second pioneered in Mumbai, both involving nuclear reactions with neutrons: in the first method, neutrons are made to strike a target of lithium or aluminum metal, which gives tritium and other by-products; the second method involves a neutron reaction with helium-3 which gives tritium and hydrogen as by-products.
Many will say helium 3 is the fuel of tomorrow, a little more here as an 'executive summary', which of course I cannot vouch for the accuracy of.
Be that as it may, India is focussing on important societal programs in space which will for example expand the network for telemedicine, tele-education and village resource centres, in other words Indian space exploration will hopefully continue to make profits and sustain and help the poor and needy, not just help politicians to create needless wars for their personal pleasure and profit, by the sufferings of millions.
US trends in federal spending on research in the last few decades have not been good. In a world where China and India are steadily stepping up their government R&D spending, this is a bad trend. To quote Professor Kulcinski, “The US is coasting on our past research and cheap labor.” NASA doesn’t trust DOE to fund and get a helium-3 reactor working if they commit the resources to get the helium-3. Hopefully access to the helium-3 will come as a byproduct of returning to the Moon, and as the DOE sees the return to the Moon advancing, they will be willing to put more money into helium-3 fusion research.
Tritium required for strategic purposes has to be produced artificially, and there are two ways to do this, the second pioneered in Mumbai, both involving nuclear reactions with neutrons: in the first method, neutrons are made to strike a target of lithium or aluminum metal, which gives tritium and other by-products; the second method involves a neutron reaction with helium-3 which gives tritium and hydrogen as by-products.
Many will say helium 3 is the fuel of tomorrow, a little more here as an 'executive summary', which of course I cannot vouch for the accuracy of.
Be that as it may, India is focussing on important societal programs in space which will for example expand the network for telemedicine, tele-education and village resource centres, in other words Indian space exploration will hopefully continue to make profits and sustain and help the poor and needy, not just help politicians to create needless wars for their personal pleasure and profit, by the sufferings of millions.
# posted by uv : 2:51 AM
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