On November 29, 2009, in New York City, in age of 95 passed away Arthur Kantrowitz. Kantrowitz will be always remembered among most prominent American scientists of past century as a founder of Avco Everett Research Labs, professor of Dartmouth College, holder of numerous patents (from medicine to space) and supporter of Science Court. However, in this short note I would like to say a few words about one of his greatest contributions, which he made for us all and for future generations: the founding of laser propulsion.
Laser Propulsion is a part of rocket science, but dont be discouraged by a silly tag: the idea is simple. We pay on average $10,000 per every pound of payload delivered to low earth orbit. Why that much? Because, we use very inefficient carriers: chemical rockets. These hydrogen gluttons have to carry everything onboard: fuel, oxidizer, cryogenics, tanks, lines, you name it, leaving a small (and very expensive room) for the payload. If we could only find a way to separate the energy source from the vehicle, deliver that energy to the vehicle from some power station, the gain in efficiency of such vehicle will be tremendous.
The energy can be beamed to the rocket with powerful lasers! The original idea on beaming energy to a space rocket was invented by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky in 1924. Genius and visionary, Tsiolkovsky could not know about lasers (the first laser was demonstrated in 1960), so he was talking about tight beams of light, beamed to a rocket and hence providing it with necessary energy or, in other words, making the rocket much more energy efficient. In 1924 all this was just a dream, a few decades later Arthur Kantrowitz presented the world with scientifically sound plan for turning this dream into reality.
In 1972 journal of Astronautics and Aeronautics was published with paper of Arthur Kantrowitz, titled Propulsion to Orbit by Ground Based Lasers. This paper started a new field of space science and technology: laser propulsion. Kantrowitz proposed a genius idea: to launch space satellites from ground to space using high-power lasers. When high power laser light is focused on a solid matter, such matter is evaporated and ionized almost instantaneously. The release of energy in such process, called laser ablation, is much more powerful than one used from burning hydrogen in rockets! Therefore, without changing the main principle of rocket propulsion (moving forward by pushing from exhaust), we can achieve much better and efficient way of launches, if our satellites will be just straddling the tips of powerful laser beams. Such systems will be much lighter and energy efficient, comparing to hydrogen-burning rockets.
Driven by laser rocket will be composed of very light focusing mirrors, relatively small (energy efficient) solid propellant and, voila: the rest will be payload! Forget heavy liquefied gases (oxygen and hydrogen), cryogenics, fuel tanks and lines, combustion chambers, etc.: Payload, Propellant and Photons, Period! Arthur Kantrowitz called it 4P Rule. Bottom line: scientifically sound calculations have shown that the price of one pound of a payload delivered to low earth orbit will be drop to $100. Laser propulsion offers 100-fold, revolutionary savings on space deliveries.
The original paper of Kantrowitz was like a first milestone at the beginning of a long way, a scientific quest for beamed-energy propulsion. Kantrowitz not mere wrote a fundamental paper, he started the first in the world research program on laser propulsion at Avco Everett Research Labs. Decade later new research projects followed the cause and two decades later first laser-driven vehicles were launched into air (but not to space yet). New countries: Russia, Japan, Germany, China opened their own research programs and hundreds of researchers joined the field. New forms for beamed-energy propulsion were found, such as microwave propulsion. Hundreds of people work on this field today, the work is in progress, there is still a lot to do. Remarkably, this field was opened by one man, Arthur Kantrowitz, and he will be always remembered for that. - 16747
Laser Propulsion is a part of rocket science, but dont be discouraged by a silly tag: the idea is simple. We pay on average $10,000 per every pound of payload delivered to low earth orbit. Why that much? Because, we use very inefficient carriers: chemical rockets. These hydrogen gluttons have to carry everything onboard: fuel, oxidizer, cryogenics, tanks, lines, you name it, leaving a small (and very expensive room) for the payload. If we could only find a way to separate the energy source from the vehicle, deliver that energy to the vehicle from some power station, the gain in efficiency of such vehicle will be tremendous.
The energy can be beamed to the rocket with powerful lasers! The original idea on beaming energy to a space rocket was invented by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky in 1924. Genius and visionary, Tsiolkovsky could not know about lasers (the first laser was demonstrated in 1960), so he was talking about tight beams of light, beamed to a rocket and hence providing it with necessary energy or, in other words, making the rocket much more energy efficient. In 1924 all this was just a dream, a few decades later Arthur Kantrowitz presented the world with scientifically sound plan for turning this dream into reality.
In 1972 journal of Astronautics and Aeronautics was published with paper of Arthur Kantrowitz, titled Propulsion to Orbit by Ground Based Lasers. This paper started a new field of space science and technology: laser propulsion. Kantrowitz proposed a genius idea: to launch space satellites from ground to space using high-power lasers. When high power laser light is focused on a solid matter, such matter is evaporated and ionized almost instantaneously. The release of energy in such process, called laser ablation, is much more powerful than one used from burning hydrogen in rockets! Therefore, without changing the main principle of rocket propulsion (moving forward by pushing from exhaust), we can achieve much better and efficient way of launches, if our satellites will be just straddling the tips of powerful laser beams. Such systems will be much lighter and energy efficient, comparing to hydrogen-burning rockets.
Driven by laser rocket will be composed of very light focusing mirrors, relatively small (energy efficient) solid propellant and, voila: the rest will be payload! Forget heavy liquefied gases (oxygen and hydrogen), cryogenics, fuel tanks and lines, combustion chambers, etc.: Payload, Propellant and Photons, Period! Arthur Kantrowitz called it 4P Rule. Bottom line: scientifically sound calculations have shown that the price of one pound of a payload delivered to low earth orbit will be drop to $100. Laser propulsion offers 100-fold, revolutionary savings on space deliveries.
The original paper of Kantrowitz was like a first milestone at the beginning of a long way, a scientific quest for beamed-energy propulsion. Kantrowitz not mere wrote a fundamental paper, he started the first in the world research program on laser propulsion at Avco Everett Research Labs. Decade later new research projects followed the cause and two decades later first laser-driven vehicles were launched into air (but not to space yet). New countries: Russia, Japan, Germany, China opened their own research programs and hundreds of researchers joined the field. New forms for beamed-energy propulsion were found, such as microwave propulsion. Hundreds of people work on this field today, the work is in progress, there is still a lot to do. Remarkably, this field was opened by one man, Arthur Kantrowitz, and he will be always remembered for that. - 16747
About the Author:
Dr. Andrew Pakhomov is founder and president of American Institute of Beamed Energy Propulsion, a nonprofit corporation serving to development and popularization of this advanced space technology AIBEP He is also associate professor of physics at University of Alabama in Huntsville. To read more about Prof. Kantrowitz and fascinating field of laser propulsion, please visit official web site of AIBEP.
