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Defense Intelligence Reference Document Positron Aerospace Propulsion

Defense Intelligence Agency · 35 pages · text from the file's own layer

This unclassified Defense Intelligence Reference Document from the Defense Intelligence Agency is dated 2 March 2010. It was produced in FY 2009 under the Advanced Aerospace Weapon System Applications (AAWSA) Program. The report reviews work on using positrons as aerospace fuel. It covers air-breathing turbojet and ramjet engines, unmanned aircraft, missiles, single-stage reusable vehicles, positron rockets and a crewed Mars mission, along with how positrons could be produced and stored. It concludes that a first positron-powered flight around the globe could be possible within 10 years.

  • p. 5 …This paper is an anthology of that work and not a general review of antimatter propulsion…
  • p. 7 …Because of the aforementioned performance bounds of combustion engines, the aeronautic industry has worked diligently to…
  • p. 13 …Defense, NASA, and the aerospace industry are working to eliminate multistage rockets for access to low…
  • p. 16 …28 In a solid-core positron rocket, positrons heat a hydrogen working fluid through an attenuating…
  • p. 18 …heated H: • Propellant-heated He • Working fluids for power • Working fluids for power systems - inert gas…
  • p. 21 …was assumed to be parabolic for this work. 38 To make the Sanger photon rocket practical…
  • p. 22 …be possible • Hot-bleed line possible Future work • Efficiency study Gas-Core Sanger Ablation 1000 - 2500…
  • p. 23 …consumption does not dominate rocket positron consumption. ◄ Work 5 Rf'!gf'l'M'rllto.- JC~ ~ 4…
  • p. 31 …What lifetimes might be expected working Figure 22. TEM of Silica Aerogel (courtesy with this material…
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Table 1. GLOW for Chemical SSRV21
Vehicle Component
Structure
Thermal Protection
Propulsion (4 engines)
Electronics
TOTAL DRY MASS
15% Margin + Unused Propellants
Payload
BURNOUT MASS
TOTAL PROPELLANT
GLOW
Mass
25,700 kg
12,300 kg
14,900 kg
7 600 kg
60,500 kg
11,400 kg
11,340 kg (24,948 lbs)
83,240 kg
368,300 kg
451,540 kg (993,388 lbs)
Table 2. GLOW for Positron SSRV22
Vehicle Component
Structure
Thermal Protection
Propulsion (4 engines)
Electronics
TOTAL DRY MASS
15% Margin + Unused Propellants
Payload
BURNOUT MASS
TOTAL PROPELLANT
GLOW
Mass
25,700 kg
12,300 kg
14,900 kg
7 600 kg
60.500 kg
11,400 kg
11,340 kg (24,948 lbs)
83,240 kg
176,000 kg
259,240 k 590,328 lbs
The GLOW of the positron SSRV is 43 percent less than that of the chemical SSRV
owing to reduced propellant mass. The PTRE will dramatically increase the affordability
of space transportation by increasing the useful payload.
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Report, from the dia collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is under it. 35 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.