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What can launch an object into space?
The Short Answer: We launch things into space by putting them on rockets with enough fuel — called propellant — to boost them above most of Earth’s atmosphere. Once a rocket reaches the right distance from Earth, it releases the satellite or spacecraft.
What is the engine of a spaceship called?
This is the Space Shuttle Main Engine (SSME). Three SSME’s plus two Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs) power the reusable Space Shuttle. Each SSME produces 375,000 lbs of thrust or a total of 1,125,000 lbs and uses liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen as propellants.
What is the fastest propulsion system?
Laser beam powered lithium-ion drives ten times faster than any previous ion drive. A spacecraft with this system would take less than a year to get to Pluto. JPL is building and proving out the various components of this system.
Can a railgun shoot into space?
Railguns can acheive a muzzle velocity of a projectile on the order of 7.5 km/s. The Earth’s escape velocity is 11.2 km/s. It seems to me that a railgun style launch device built into a deep shaft such as an abandoned mine could reasonably launch a vehicle into space.
Can a bullet go to space?
Yes. Bullets carry their own oxidising agent in the explosive of the cartridge (which is sealed, anyway) so there’s no need for atmospheric oxygen to ignite the propellant. Once shot, the bullet will keep going forever, as the universe is expanding at a faster rate than the bullet will travel.
Which engine is used in rockets?
Thrust-to-weight ratio
| Jet or rocket engine | Mass | Thrust, vacuum |
|---|---|---|
| (kg) | (kN) | |
| F-1 (Saturn V first stage) | 8,391 | 7,740.5 |
| NK-33 rocket engine | 1,222 | 1,638 |
| Merlin 1D rocket engine, full-thrust version | 467 | 825 |
Do spaceships use fuel in space?
The propellant is primarily needed to get the spacecraft into orbit, not to stay in orbit. When about half the propellant is burned, the bottom half of the rocket is jettisoned. This makes the remaining rocket considerably lighter, which means when the engines in the next stage ignite, they will have a greater effect.
How fast can a human go without dying?
This is a well documented field, and the average maximum survivable g-force is about 16g (157m/s) sustained for 1 minute. However this limit depends on the individual, whether the acceleration is applied to one’s entire body or just individual parts and the time in which the acceleration is endured over.
How fast can an ion engine go?
200,000 mph
Several thrusters can be used on a spacecraft, but they are often used just one at a time. Spacecraft powered by these thrusters can reach speeds up to 90,000 meters per second (over 200,000 mph).
Is it possible to fire a projectile into space?
Fires can’t burn in the oxygen-free vacuum of space, but guns can shoot. Modern ammunition contains its own oxidizer, a chemical that will trigger the explosion of gunpowder, and thus the firing of a bullet, wherever you are in the universe. No atmospheric oxygen required.
Can artillery shoot into space?
In a three-body or larger system, a gravity assist trajectory might be available such that a carefully aimed escape velocity projectile would have its trajectory modified by the gravitational fields of other bodies in the system such that the projectile would eventually return to orbit the initial planet using only the …
What does space smell like?
Astronaut Thomas Jones said it “carries a distinct odor of ozone, a faint acrid smell…a little like gunpowder, sulfurous.” Tony Antonelli, another space-walker, said space “definitely has a smell that’s different than anything else.” A gentleman named Don Pettit was a bit more verbose on the topic: “Each time, when I …
How do we launch things into space?
We launch things into space by putting them on rockets with enough fuel — called propellant — to boost them above most of Earth’s atmosphere. Once a rocket reaches the right distance from Earth, it releases the satellite or spacecraft. How Do We Launch Things into Space?
How does a rocket launch work?
To launch, the rocket needs enough propellants so that the thrust pushing the rocket up is greater than the force of gravity pulling the rocket down. A rocket needs to speed up to at least 17,800 miles per hour—and fly above most of the atmosphere, in a curved path around Earth. This ensures that it won’t be pulled back down to the ground.
How can a vehicle reach orbit without using a rocket?
Vehicles can then climb the tether and reach orbit without the use of rocket propulsion. Such a cable could be made out of any material able to support itself under tension by tapering the cable’s diameter sufficiently quickly as it approached the Earth’s surface.
What is object a in a rocket?
It turns out that object A is the gases escaping the rocket. As the gases escape the nozzle of the rocket, they interact with the rocket itself. The gases exert a force forward on the rocket, and the rocket pushes back on the gases because of Newton’s Third Law.