High Power Electric Propulsion: MARS plus EUROPA – Already Beyond 2025!

It’s mid-term realization plus global strategic investments: the results of the European Russian DEMOCRITOS project (Horizon 2020) related to the MW class INPPS (International Nuclear Power and Propulsion System) flagship will be described. INPPS flagship includes high power electric thrusters cluster, supplied electric power by the nuclear reactor (successfully tested in Russia) and a solar power ring. Two INPPS versions were studied – the wide and arrow wing versions. Both versions have a futuristic design with standardized interfaces for several flagship subsystems. Especially the high payload mass of INPPS allows the transport of – for example – up to 12 t to JUPITER moon EUROPA and about 18 t to MARS – as a function of specific impulse of electric thrusters. INPPS flagship not only allows scientific, but especially commercial and communication payloads as well. This means industrial-scale production of space flight systems for robotic and human space exploration. International cooperation related to INPPS realization are necessary within an International High Power Space Transportation program to realize the DEMOCRITOS core, ground and space components until 2025. DEMOCRITOS project included partners from Europe, Russia and a Brazilian guest observer and received several inputs from NASA Cleveland and JAXA Tokyo

The effect of Banana streak virus on the growth and yield of dessert bananas in tropical Australia

We have examined the effect of a strain of Banana streak virus (BSV-Cav) on the growth and yield of dessert bananas (Musa AAA group, Cavendish subgroup cv. Williams) in north Queensland, Australia. Healthy and infected plants were compared in a replicated field experiment over plant and first ratoon crops. In both crops, symptom expression followed a similar pattern, increasing to a maximum near the estimated time of bunch initiation, then decreasing in the period prior to bunch emergence. There was no evidence of plant-to-plant spread of virus, but the rate of transmission through suckers was 100%. In the plant crop, the mean bunch weights of healthy and infected plants were not significantly different. However, BSV-Cav infection resulted in an 18 day delay in harvest, causing a 6% reduction in yield per annum. In the ratoon crop, the mean bunch weight of infected plants was 7% less than that of healthy plants, and the interval between the harvest of plant and ratoon crops was delayed by 9 days, resulting in a 11% reduction in yield per annum. Also, the mean length of fruit from infected plants was 5% less than that of healthy plants, resulting in a smaller percentage of fruit in the extra large size category. We conclude that in horticulturally favourable conditions typical of the tropical Australian banana industry, the effects of BSV-Cav infection on the growth and yield of Cavendish bananas are small

INPPS Flagship: Cluster of Electric Thrusters

This paper describes the results of the European-Russian DEMOCRITOS and MEGAHIT projects related to the electric thrusters on board the International Nuclear Power and Propulsion System (INPPS) flagship. INPPS flagship is a high power space transportation hybrid tug (power supply primary by nuclear power, by auxiliary solar power ring and chemical propulsion due to subsystems transport for assembly at high Earth orbit above 800 km) for Mars, Europa, Moon and asteroid exploration flights. In dependence from the actual exploration mission, mission phases, trajectory, and preferred international high power electric thrusters (about 20 - 50 kW) with different specific impulse, the results will be discussed in detail - also as a function of the transportable payload mass. Because of the 1 MWe nuclear reactor (successful ground based test confirmed by Russia in 2018) as the power supply for INPPS a cluster of about 15 or more electric thrusters were studied in the DEMOCRITOS project for MARS and EUROPA INPPS flagships. Issues related to power processing units for the electric thrusters were identified and will be discussed. In addition, low power (kW) electric thrusters for an INPPS flagship co-flying small inspection satellite are sketched too. Insofar the presentation is directly highlighting aspects of disruptive electric propulsion subsystems, within the INPPS space system and applied to visionary Mars (including non-human and human) and Europa exploration and space transport tug flights

Electrical Thrusters in the EC MEGAHIT and DEMOCRITOS Projects

Die elektrischen Antriebe in den EU Projekten DiPoP, MEGAHIT und DEMOCRITOS werden beschrieben. Ebenfalls die MEGAHIT Roadmap und das DEMOCRITOS Projekt