>
America Growing at Odds with Itself: Something's Not Being Said
Outraged Farmers Blame Ag Monopolies as Catastrophic Collapse Looms
Exposing the Cover-Up That Could Collapse Big Medicine: Parasites
Israel's Former Space Security Chief says Aliens exist, and President Trump knows about it
Methylene chloride (CH2Cl?) and acetone (C?H?O) create a powerful paint remover...
Engineer Builds His Own X-Ray After Hospital Charges Him $69K
Researchers create 2D nanomaterials with up to nine metals for extreme conditions
The Evolution of Electric Motors: From Bulky to Lightweight, Efficient Powerhouses
3D-Printing 'Glue Gun' Can Repair Bone Fractures During Surgery Filling-in the Gaps Around..
Kevlar-like EV battery material dissolves after use to recycle itself
Laser connects plane and satellite in breakthrough air-to-space link
Lucid Motors' World-Leading Electric Powertrain Breakdown with Emad Dlala and Eric Bach
Murder, UFOs & Antigravity Tech -- What's Really Happening at Huntsville, Alabama's Space Po
That scenario is now one step closer, as engineers from NASA and the University of Michigan have successfully tested the X3, a thruster designed to get us to Mars. And it's broken several records in the process.
The X3 is one of three Mars engine prototypes currently in development. It is what's known as a Hall thruster, which uses electric and magnetic fields to ionize gases like xenon and expels the ions to produce thrust. The technique is much cleaner, safer and more fuel efficient than traditional chemical rockets, but the trade off is relatively low thrust and acceleration.
"Mars missions are just on the horizon, and we already know that Hall thrusters work well in space," says Alec Gallimore, lead engineer on the X3's development. "They can be optimized either for carrying equipment with minimal energy and propellant over the course of a year or so, or for speed — carrying the crew to Mars much more quickly."