Space launches have evoked the same vivid image for decades: bright orange flames exploding beneath a rocket as it lifts off and thunders into the sky. An alternative acceleration system could reshape that vision forever, with rockets leaving their energy source on the ground... or in space. Laser Propulsion in Space: Fundamentals, Technology, and Future Missions takes readers on a comprehensive journey from the theoretical overview of propulsion fundamentals, to reviews of current projects involving high-power CW fiber lasers and energetic mm-wave sources with their ongoing and potential end-use applications in beamed energy propulsion (BEP). Written by experts in the field, this mathematically sound reference text also highlights graphical solutions of equations’ results, as well as case studies with worked-out examples, making this book an invaluable compendium for students, researchers, technology developers and futurists in understanding the promise and challenges of this emerging technology.
1. Cover image - p. Cover 2. Title page - p. ii 3. Table of Contents - p. iii 4. Copyright - p. iii 5. Contributors - p. iv 6. Preface - p. iv 7. List of Illustrations - p. xiv 8. List of Tables - p. xiv 9. Chapter 1: Basic theory of laser propulsion - p. xiv 10. Chapter 2: Breakthrough Starshot program overview - p. 35 11. Chapter 3: Starshot system model - p. 67 12. Chapter 4: Space situational awareness: the potential role of lasers in long-term sustainability of space operations - p. 119 13. Chapter 5: State of the art in high-power lasers - p. 145 14. Chapter 6: High-power laser engines - p. 173 15. Chapter 7: Large-scale directed energy - p. 203 16. Chapter 8: The ways to improve momentum and kinetic efficiency of laser propulsion - p. 223 17. Chapter 9: Laser-driven, In-Tube Accelerator (LITA) - p. 257 18. Chapter 10: Fly by light – demos and prizes - p. 282 19. Chapter 11: The dual-use dilemma and high-energy systems in space - p. 371 20. Index - p. 387
Space launches have evoked the same vivid image for decades: bright orange flames exploding beneath a rocket as it lifts off and thunders into the sky. An alternative acceleration system could reshape that vision forever, with rockets leaving their energy source on the ground... or in space. Laser Propulsion in Space: Fundamentals, Technology, and Future Missions takes readers on a comprehensive journey from the theoretical overview of propulsion fundamentals, to reviews of current projects involving high-power CW fiber lasers and energetic mm-wave sources with their ongoing and potential end-use applications in beamed energy propulsion (BEP). Written by experts in the field, this mathematically sound reference text also highlights graphical solutions of equations’ results, as well as case studies with worked-out examples, making this book an invaluable compendium for students, researchers, technology developers and futurists in understanding the promise and challenges of this emerging technology.
1. Cover image - p. Cover 2. Title page - p. ii 3. Table of Contents - p. iii 4. Copyright - p. iii 5. Contributors - p. iv 6. Preface - p. iv 7. List of Illustrations - p. xiv 8. List of Tables - p. xiv 9. Chapter 1: Basic theory of laser propulsion - p. xiv 10. Chapter 2: Breakthrough Starshot program overview - p. 35 11. Chapter 3: Starshot system model - p. 67 12. Chapter 4: Space situational awareness: the potential role of lasers in long-term sustainability of space operations - p. 119 13. Chapter 5: State of the art in high-power lasers - p. 145 14. Chapter 6: High-power laser engines - p. 173 15. Chapter 7: Large-scale directed energy - p. 203 16. Chapter 8: The ways to improve momentum and kinetic efficiency of laser propulsion - p. 223 17. Chapter 9: Laser-driven, In-Tube Accelerator (LITA) - p. 257 18. Chapter 10: Fly by light – demos and prizes - p. 282 19. Chapter 11: The dual-use dilemma and high-energy systems in space - p. 371 20. Index - p. 387
