Fusion Rocket Based on Stabilized Liner Implosions

Examination continues in detail for the use of controlled fusion for high-energy, crewed-missions to the outer planets at significant continual acceleration (>0.01go). Transit times to Jupiter measured in a few months, delivering 200 t of payload, appear possible, but require the use of advanced fuels, e.g., D-He³, to reduce the excessive burden of radiator mass needed to process the heat of fusion neutrons. Such advanced reactions, however, need plasma temperatures in excess of 100 keV, so adiabatic compression is invoked to match the desired final state to much more modest initial temperature values. This compression would be achieved by stabilized implosion of liquid metal liners, as demonstrated decades ago in the Linus program at the Naval Research Laboratory. Distinctions are drawn between the present propulsion design options and the earlier Linus fusion power reactor based on D-T fuel.