🚀 go-pugleaf

chris@chrism.demon.co.uk (Chris Marriott) writes:

> In article <1993Jan7.124608.1@fnalo.fnal.gov> higgins@fnalo.fnal.gov writes:
> 
> >In article <C0GH9C.DA@zoo.toronto.edu>, henry@zoo.toronto.edu (Henry Spencer
> 
> >Does a Bussard ramjet work *at all* below seriously relativistic
> >velocities?  
> >
> >Seems to me below some large speed, which I recall as
> >something much bigger than .5c, you don't gather enough interstellar
> >hydrogen to keep things stoked.  Admittedly I remember details rather
> >fuzzily, and don't know how to apply them to the "ram-augmented
> >interstellar rocket" Henry is talking about. 
> >
> 
> I don't remember now *where* I read it, but I seem to recall that a
> Bussard Ramjet starts working at speed around about 450km/sec.  Although
> this is an order of magnitude beyond the speeds of current space vehicles,
> it's certainly not unreachable eg, with ion drives.
> -- 
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> | Chris Marriott                           | chris@chrism.demon.co.uk    |
> | Warrington, UK                           | BIX: cmarriott              |
> | (Still awaiting inspiration              | CIX: cmarriott              |
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>  

Certainly not unreachable at all.  I _believe_ that, working on pure 
kinetic energy, the speed a friend of mine figured out was .017c...

                                                Jason Cooper