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 e ...

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 occurs. This fission reaction propels the craft. MMO should be able to propel 100 tons to

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within 3 months or to

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in about one year.

History

In June 2000,

Andrews Space Andrews Space was founded in 1999 by Jason Andrews and Marian Joh to be a catalyst in the commercialization, exploration and development of space. Originally named Andrews Space & Technology, the company shortened its name in 2003 to Andrews Space. ...

concluded a Phase I

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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

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 Ba ...

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 Z-machine is a virtual machine that was developed by Joel Berez and Marc Blank in 1979 and used by Infocom for its text adventure games. Infocom compiled game code to files containing Z-machine instructions (called story files or Z-code ...

, 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