#Space 
is a far more logical, sensible place to do #fusion, because that’s where it wants to happen anyway. In 
2027, we’re going to send a small part of #Sunbird in #orbit. The first #functional Sunbird will be ready four to five years later. Sunbird could deliver #cargo to #Mars 
in under six months https://edition.cnn.com/science/nuclear-powered-rocket-pulsar-space-spc/index.html
In an #electrospray thruster, charged particles are pulled directly out of a liquid propellant using a strong electric field and accelerated using charged #electrodes https://spacepropulsion.mit.edu/electric-propulsion
The #3Dprinted prototype was able to generate thrust more #efficiently than larger, more expensive #chemical rockets and outperformed existing droplet #electrospray engines. It can be produced rapidly and for a fraction of the #cost 
of traditional thrusters and even be fully made in #orbit https://news.mit.edu/2025/mit-engineers-develop-fully-3d-printed-electrospray-engine-0212
#MIT #OpenLearning, topic #SpacePropulsion, excerpt :
• Fundamentals and Definitions
• Basic #Electromagnetic Theory and Plasma Physics
• #Electrostatic Thrusters
• Characterization of Space Propulsion Devices
• #Plasma Accelerators
...
https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/16-522-space-propulsion-spring-2015/pages/lecture-notes/
Ultrananocrystalline diamond 
may be a promising approach to prolong service life. #Nanoscaled metamaterial could help to reduce the heat losses. #SelfHealing of Boron nitride nanotubes with very high tensile strength similar to that of carbon nanotubes, and excellent electrical characteristics https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-017-02269-7
#FusionPropulsion offers 1000 times the power of conventional #IonThrusters currently used in orbit. The vacuum environment and extremely cold 
temperatures of space provide an ideal setting for fusion propulsion * https://orbitaltoday.com/2023/07/14/interplanetary-travel-to-become-faster-through-nuclear-fusion/
The #FireStar Drive begins a fusion process by adding #boron into the thruster exhaust. The base thruster generates high-speed protons through the ionization of water vapor. These protons collide with the nucleus of a boron atom, which starts the fusion reaction. The technique produced ionizing radiation and increased the base propulsion unit’s thrust by 50% 
https://interestingengineering.com/space/nuclear-fusion-powered-electric-propulsion-drive
A #DirectFusionDrive* could propel a #spacecraft to #Mars in two months. For comparison, it took #NASA’s Perseverance rover about seven months to reach the Red Planet. https://payloadspace.com/helicity-raises-5m-for-in-space-fusion-propulsion/
Exhaust speeds are calculated to be roughly one-thousand times that of a #HallEffectThruster https://www.space.com/nuclear-fusion-breakthrough-spacetravel
August 7, 2023 fusion ignition 
breakthrough https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-scientists-repeat-fusion-power-breakthrough-ft-2023-08-06/
#ScienceDirect 2006 : The magneto-plasma sail produces the #propulsive force due to the interaction between the artificial #magnetic 
#field around the #spacecraft inflated by the plasma and the #SolarWind erupted from the #Sun 
with a speed of 300–800 km/s https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0094576505002365
#Space #LaserPropulsion concept, traveling into #DeepSpace at 480,000 km/h : Pellet-beam propulsion #spacecraft could reach #Voyager 1 
in 5 years https://interestingengineering.com/science/pellet-beam-propulsion-spacecraft-voyager
Voyager positions : https://voyager.jpl.nasa.gov/mission/status
Picture : Voyager 1 trajectory in the sky from #earth from 1977-2030 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Voyager_1_skypath_1977-2030.png
rockets can beat 