• =?UTF-8?Q?=E2=80=9C=27Acceleration_without_fuel=27_-_revolutionary_?==?UTF-8?Q?thruster_aces_first_tests_on_orbit=E2=80=9D?=

    From Lynn McGuire@lynnmcguire5@gmail.com to rec.arts.sf.written on Mon Jul 20 15:46:10 2026
    “'Acceleration without fuel' - revolutionary thruster aces first tests
    on orbit”

    https://thesilicongraybeard.blogspot.com/2026/07/acceleration-without-fuel-revolutionary.html

    "News broke on Space.com this afternoon about successful tests of the
    first of its kind thruster that uses superconducting magnets to move a satellite in space.

    "Zenno Astronautics, a spin-off from the University of Auckland, has
    flown its new "Supertorquer" system on the Mira satellite built by California-based start-up Impulse Space. The tests began shortly after
    Mira's launch in November last year aboard the SpaceX Transporter 12
    mission and saw the shoebox-size device perform with flying colors,
    Zenno Astronautics CEO and founder Max Arshavsky, told Space.com."

    https://www.space.com/space-exploration/launches-spacecraft/spacex-to-launch-131-satellites-on-transporter-12-rideshare-mission-today

    “Superconducting magnetics can convert solar energy input directly into momentum in space, by interacting with the Earth's magnetic field, so
    the solar energy input takes the place of liquid fuels carried for
    onboard thrusters. The problem with this approach has been that the
    hardware to do it was too big, complex, and heavy to fit on a satellite.”

    Huh.

    Lynn