Neptune Orbiter, Another proposed mission |
Neptune Orbiter, Another proposed mission |
Nov 10 2005, 03:51 PM
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Member Group: Members Posts: 509 Joined: 2-July 05 From: Calgary, Alberta Member No.: 426 |
This seems like a good place to start off the Uranus and Neptune forum: with the next ice-giants mission.
I will admit to not knowing a whole lot about the Neptune Orbiter With Probes (NOWP), other than the fact that it's in the planning stages, and a few other details I've gathered from Wikipedia and various other Internet sources. Anyone care to get this one going with a bit more information? |
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Jul 26 2006, 01:40 PM
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Junior Member Group: Members Posts: 57 Joined: 13-February 06 From: Brisbane, Australia Member No.: 679 |
Hi All
Solar concentrators are such a cool concept for powersats, and I've seen Neptune probe designs with concentrators, but the pointing issue is pretty much mission critical, especially since batteries are too damned heavy to use when the collectors aren't pointing at the Sun. Supercapacitors are getting better all the time and the claimed energy density of some are better than batteries too. Yet nukes are a proven technology and not the potential catastrophe that excessively strident environmentalists carryon about. To me a proper nuclear reactor is a better option than RTGs. Thermoelectric conversion technology is getting better all the time - the old Russian Topaz reactors had a mere 3% efficiency, yet 18% efficiency is being developed, and even higher efficiencies are possible in theory. So why throwaway the option to avoid a minor risk? And a reactor is even safer if it is deactivated until high orbit is achieved. It just seems insane to me that NASA dumped the original reactor program so long ago, and then to have a half-revival with Prometheus, to then see that program in limbo... Nuts! Adam |
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