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Why use gas powered ones when nuclear powered ones can last forever?? And make far longer trips?

Do we even have the resources and ingenuity to accomplish that today? How do we transform enough nuclear energy into kinetic such that there's enough thrust to escape Earth's gravity? A lot of reaction mass would be needed.

So we dont have the technology to transfer nuclear energy to create thrust?

Doesnt a nuclear explosion creates thrust and kinetic energy?

We don't have nuclear-powered shuttles because their is no need for a nuclear-powered shuttle.

Generally, new things are built because we have a need for them.

......causing a nuclear explosion in order to give a space shuttle thrust may prove to be quite devastating.

Originally posted by BlackZero30x
......causing a nuclear explosion in order to give a space shuttle thrust may prove to be quite devastating. How so?

What would contain this explosion during thrust so it doesn't have the damaging effect of...well a nuclear explosion?

Originally posted by BlackZero30x
What would contain this explosion during thrust so it doesn't have the damaging effect of...well a nuclear explosion? I thought they could minimize it by only using a very small amout.

But nevermind it wouldnt work

What will happen once we discover a thin piece of material capable of blaoking/absorbing radiaton?

Wwould they put them in cars, airplanes etc?

Originally posted by Colossus-Big C
What will happen once we discover a thin piece of material capable of blaoking/absorbing radiaton?

Like every piece of solid matter in the universe you mean? Or (if you're referring only to ionizing radiation) like lead?

Originally posted by BlackZero30x
What would contain this explosion during thrust so it doesn't have the damaging effect of...well a nuclear explosion? Science.

Originally posted by Symmetric Chaos
Like every piece of solid matter in the universe you mean? Or (if you're referring only to ionizing radiation) like lead? all radiation, alpha beta etc

You can block alpha radiation with a sheet of paper.

Originally posted by Lord Lucien
You can block alpha radiation with a sheet of paper. so why cant cars be nuclear powered again?

Originally posted by Colossus-Big C
so why cant cars be nuclear powered again? They can be.

Originally posted by Colossus-Big C
so why cant cars be nuclear powered again? Nuclear fission isn't the same as nuclear fusion. It's not about the radiation-- nuclear fusion tends to be kinda hot and explosive. It's why cold fusion would be the Holy Grail of energy.

Originally posted by Colossus-Big C
Why use gas powered ones when nuclear powered ones can last forever?? And make far longer trips?
Here is an interesting article: http://www.forbes.com/sites/brucedorminey/2012/04/02/time-for-nasa-to-go-nuclear/

NTR technology may also make manned Mars mission possible.

NTRs have a ridiculously lower thrust-to-weight ratio than chemical rockets we currently use.

Originally posted by Colossus-Big C
Why use gas powered ones when nuclear powered ones can last forever?? And make far longer trips? Space shuttles have never been gas powered, if by gas you mean gasoline.

Rockets and shuttles in the past have been powered by liquid hydrogen.

As I recall, there was some interest in nuclear powered spacecraft during the Cold War, and I want to say that there has been at least one nuclear powered space probe. Realistically though, the only expedition that may be launched in the foreseeable future that might require nuclear power would be a manned mission to Mars.

Dangerous experiment, but this may be realized in future. Who knows

Nuclear fuel is costly, rare and creates the potential for disasters. There are more efficient theoretical methods for conventional cosmic propulsion such as ion engines. The point is really moot since once you're in outer space, you only really need thrust to break away form gravity, speed up, slow down, change direction, or stop. Most of those things could be done in small bursts unless you actually want to be constantly accelerating. That's risky since you may not have enough power to stop, your mass and density will be constantly increasing while relative time slows down.

This is why I think we need to get away from conventional propulsion for manned and unmanned space flights and start to more seriously research warping space, stable wormholes, and what causes mass and whether that particle can be manipulated.