From: Hal Finney (hal@rain.org)
Date: Mon Aug 10 1998 - 13:05:10 MDT
> I understand, I thought it would take less fuel since the operation would be
> done in a vacuum. The idea is still there, for when we have the opportunuity
> to slow it down without using or bringing extra fuel, there would be more
> possibilities in a vacuum to do something like that, perhaps laser technology
> or some kind of waveform, using satellites.
>
> danny
Ironically, in the context of remote space exploration, slowing down
by rockets is the old-fashioned way to go, and atmospheric braking
is the hot new idea. The movie 2010 had a dramatic sequence showing
aerobraking being used to put a manned spacecraft into orbit around
Jupiter.
The current Mars observer has been using aerobraking to circularize
its orbit, although the technique has not worked too well because of a
problem with a somewhat broken solar panel attachment.
Aerobraking can potentially save considerable fuel in a mission to orbit
another planet and no doubt it will continue to be used in the future.
It would be somewhat backwards to use rockets in the one case where
atmospheric braking is well established and understood, re-entry into
Earth's atmosphere.
Hal
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.5 : Fri Nov 01 2002 - 14:49:26 MST