After watching the anime "Wandaba Style" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wandaba_Style , I got to thinking how Dr. Susumu Tsukumo's goal of reaching the moon without chemical or nuclear propulsion might actually be accomplished using realistic science. Thus this challenge.
The goal is to take a 10,000 kg CSM from Earth's surface to the lunar surface and back again within a 60 day round trip mission time (i.e. counting from Earth liftoff to Earth touchdown).
This is a paper study--you do not need to simulate or fly your proposed mission in Orbiter, but you do need to show your physics calculations to demonstrate that it is feasible. Bonus points will go to those who do choose to attempt their proposal in Orbiter, and double bonus points for those who do so and fly the mission successfully. If anybody creates such a scenario, then I would like to bundle them together at the end of the challenge and post them on orbithanger or something.
Restrictions:
1: You may not use chemical or nuclear power to propel your vessel at any time.
A: Definition of Nuclear Power: Any energy generated from nuclear fission or fusion in a man-made device. Solar power does not count as nuclear for this challenge even though solar energy comes from fusion.
B: Definition of Chemical Power: Any energy generated by chemical reactions (human metabolism excepted). Any rocket exhaust must also not react chemically with Earth's atmosphere (so the exhaust must not consist mainly of free hydrogen, ammonia, hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, etc.) Ionization of exhaust due to high temperature or use of electricity (as in ion or VASIMR thrusters) does not count as chemical power for this challenge.
C: For the purpose of this challenge, any electricity used on the ground is assumed to come from non-chemical/non-nuclear sources. You may beam it to the spacecraft or use it to preheat cold-gas propellant or whatever you wish.
2: You may not build any mega-structures extending more than ten kilometers above or below the surface of the Earth. Large horizontal structures such as a several-thousand-kilometer long railroad (for rail-launching) are permissable as long as no part of it is more than ten kilometers above or below ground level. Structures that cross international borders on the ground or water are likewise prohibited (entering international waters is all right). This means that your spacecraft must be flying for most of its ascent out of the Earth's atmosphere instead of being lifted up a tower that is attached to the surface.
3: You must use materials and physical effects that are proven to exist. You can use hard-to-manufacture stuff like carbon nanotubes or synthetic diamond structures, but you may not invent materials. Nor may you use physics that are outside of currently accepted theory--no space-warping or reactionless engines, for example. Newtonian/Einsteinian laws will be obeyed.
4: For crew safety, acceleration above 100 m/s^2 (10 g's) will be limited to periods of not more than ten seconds at a time with at least ten seconds of lesser/zero acceleration in between. At no time will acceleration above 400 m/s^2 (40 g's) be allowed for even a millisecond (so no using a Jules Verne style cannon). Furthermore, touchdown on the surface of Moon or Earth will be at no more than 20 m/s vertical descent rate and 200 m/s horizontal rate.
5: You must not depend on intermittent natural phenomena that occur less than once per day in good weather--so no using a volcanic eruption or storm or whatever as a launch assist.
6: No pre-existing infrastructure exists on the Moon. If you wish to have any, your program must build it--this includes any lunar surface supplies/fuel that you might want.
7: Budget/Time Restrictios: Your proposal must be plausibly accomplishable with one trillion US dollars per year (i.e.about fifty to sixty times NASA's present budget) and within ten years. Any manpower and industry that you can get within these limits is permissable. Political considerations will be ignored for this challenge--you have carte blanche to do as you wish as long as it does not endanger the public. Likewise, any hardware that can plausibly be produced within a ten-year program is permitted.
As long as the above rules are followed, pretty much anything goes. Proposals will be ranked according to plausibility, safety (to flight crew, ground crew, and the public), expense, and flight time (the faster the better).
Remember that you do not have to use a single propulsion method for the entire mission--you could for example use a solar-electric powered VASIMR engine for Trans-Lunar/Lunar-Orbit/Trans-Earth Insertion. Also, keep aware that once you reach Low Earth Orbit, your engine thrust need only be powerful enough for the lunar touchdown and launch (3-5 m/s^2 acceleration).
The goal is to take a 10,000 kg CSM from Earth's surface to the lunar surface and back again within a 60 day round trip mission time (i.e. counting from Earth liftoff to Earth touchdown).
This is a paper study--you do not need to simulate or fly your proposed mission in Orbiter, but you do need to show your physics calculations to demonstrate that it is feasible. Bonus points will go to those who do choose to attempt their proposal in Orbiter, and double bonus points for those who do so and fly the mission successfully. If anybody creates such a scenario, then I would like to bundle them together at the end of the challenge and post them on orbithanger or something.
Restrictions:
1: You may not use chemical or nuclear power to propel your vessel at any time.
A: Definition of Nuclear Power: Any energy generated from nuclear fission or fusion in a man-made device. Solar power does not count as nuclear for this challenge even though solar energy comes from fusion.
B: Definition of Chemical Power: Any energy generated by chemical reactions (human metabolism excepted). Any rocket exhaust must also not react chemically with Earth's atmosphere (so the exhaust must not consist mainly of free hydrogen, ammonia, hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, etc.) Ionization of exhaust due to high temperature or use of electricity (as in ion or VASIMR thrusters) does not count as chemical power for this challenge.
C: For the purpose of this challenge, any electricity used on the ground is assumed to come from non-chemical/non-nuclear sources. You may beam it to the spacecraft or use it to preheat cold-gas propellant or whatever you wish.
2: You may not build any mega-structures extending more than ten kilometers above or below the surface of the Earth. Large horizontal structures such as a several-thousand-kilometer long railroad (for rail-launching) are permissable as long as no part of it is more than ten kilometers above or below ground level. Structures that cross international borders on the ground or water are likewise prohibited (entering international waters is all right). This means that your spacecraft must be flying for most of its ascent out of the Earth's atmosphere instead of being lifted up a tower that is attached to the surface.
3: You must use materials and physical effects that are proven to exist. You can use hard-to-manufacture stuff like carbon nanotubes or synthetic diamond structures, but you may not invent materials. Nor may you use physics that are outside of currently accepted theory--no space-warping or reactionless engines, for example. Newtonian/Einsteinian laws will be obeyed.
4: For crew safety, acceleration above 100 m/s^2 (10 g's) will be limited to periods of not more than ten seconds at a time with at least ten seconds of lesser/zero acceleration in between. At no time will acceleration above 400 m/s^2 (40 g's) be allowed for even a millisecond (so no using a Jules Verne style cannon). Furthermore, touchdown on the surface of Moon or Earth will be at no more than 20 m/s vertical descent rate and 200 m/s horizontal rate.
5: You must not depend on intermittent natural phenomena that occur less than once per day in good weather--so no using a volcanic eruption or storm or whatever as a launch assist.
6: No pre-existing infrastructure exists on the Moon. If you wish to have any, your program must build it--this includes any lunar surface supplies/fuel that you might want.
7: Budget/Time Restrictios: Your proposal must be plausibly accomplishable with one trillion US dollars per year (i.e.about fifty to sixty times NASA's present budget) and within ten years. Any manpower and industry that you can get within these limits is permissable. Political considerations will be ignored for this challenge--you have carte blanche to do as you wish as long as it does not endanger the public. Likewise, any hardware that can plausibly be produced within a ten-year program is permitted.
As long as the above rules are followed, pretty much anything goes. Proposals will be ranked according to plausibility, safety (to flight crew, ground crew, and the public), expense, and flight time (the faster the better).
Remember that you do not have to use a single propulsion method for the entire mission--you could for example use a solar-electric powered VASIMR engine for Trans-Lunar/Lunar-Orbit/Trans-Earth Insertion. Also, keep aware that once you reach Low Earth Orbit, your engine thrust need only be powerful enough for the lunar touchdown and launch (3-5 m/s^2 acceleration).
