The Mach Effect Propulsion NASA NIAC study went through a lot of effort to prove there was no vibration generated errors. The entire presentation and most of the Q&A was a defense of the validity of the first test device.
They are working to increase the size of the propulsion effect. They are working to make scaled up power supplies and engineering what should be a more powerful device. This was only briefly mentioned in the last two questions.
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_Valkyrie
The Valkyrie is a theoretical spacecraft designed by Charles Pellegrino and Jim Powell (a physicist at Brookhaven National Laboratory). The Valkyrie is theoretically able to accelerate to 92% the speed of light and decelerate afterward, carrying a small human crew to another star system.
Man I hope they prove this as valid. Chemical rockets or other technologies for space propulsion I have heard of are barely capable of opening up the solar system, let alone the galaxy, to us in human compatible time scales. A continuous, no reaction mass propulsion system like this is just what we need.
Get Elon Musk on it.
The point being that it DOESN”T prove it works if the level of acceleration is so small that it could be solar wind or the earth’s magnetic field or something.
Remember, the Pioneer or something probes had “mysterious acceleration” for years until someone worked out it was the radioisotope generators radiating heat that acted as a photon rocket.
Shouldn’t there be a simpler test of the Mach effect than trying to benchmark a space drive?
Even if the device is producing micronewtons of thrust over a period of time there will be a discernible velocity. This will be conclusive proof the device works.
Like Vernon says, get it into space and test it out.
These tiny forces could be anything, they need to scale it up.
Do you think anybody but theoretical physicists care how it’s working, if it IS proven to work?
But, no, only because even at current launch costs there are still better tests that could be done cheaply on Earth.
You think space is free of interference?? People could claim solar wind, magnetic field of the Earth, etc, etc.
The current experimental device isn’t useful as an propulsion system. Assuming that this works, this would be the aeolipile of propellantless drives. Yes it spins around, but you need to integrate the power source and control systems into a package that produces enough power to move itself.
Design a very small space probe with this engine. Launch it into space. Turn it on. See what happens.