To Mars and Beyond, Fast!

Asadvancedin-spacepropulsionmoves from sciencefiction to reality, the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket, orVASIMRengine, is a leading contender for making 'Mars in a month' a possibility.A paradigm shift in space transportation, this book is an in-depth and compellingstoryco-written by its inventor. Ittraces the riveting history of the development of the VASIMRengine.This landmarktechnology is grounded inconcepts of advancedplasma physics.Itcross-pollinates ideas and disciplines to offera new, practical, andsustainablesolution forin-space transportationbeyond low Earth orbit in the decades to come.Invented by the co-holder of the world's spaceflight record,astronaut Franklin Chang Díaz, theVASIMR engine is developedbyAd Astra Rocket Company in its Texas facilities with NASA as part of the NextSTEP VASIMRpartnership. With adequate funding, the first spaceflight of the VASIMRengine is imminent.Plasma rockets feature exhaust velocities far above those achievable by conventional chemical rockets. The VASIMRengine is themost advanced high-power plasma propulsion system operating in the world todayand it may place long, fast interplanetary journeys withinourreach in the near future.