Quote:
Originally Posted by Oregon Elephant
I think that they are great ways and the most effient way to send probs to other solar systems, but even so it will take around 20 years before it can reach the nearest solar system and even then, the info that we receive from it will be four years old when it appears on our screens.
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This is true, but the option of solar sails is so fuel-conserving that the bulk of fuel used on a trip from the earth to mars would be the initial launches. The ships could then be powered by solar sail to their destination. Its a wonderful concept that has an enormous amount of potential.
However, there are other methods of propulsion that have yet to be tested and better understood to be used in practice.
NASA - Emerging Possibilities for Space Propulsion Breakthroughs
This is an interesting article written by someone for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (of the USA) that briefly (or possibly not so briefly) discusses some up-and-coming space propulsion possibilities. What I believe is that we need to learn how to reduce the amount of fuel needed to get from point A to point B. Doing so will allow us to increase payloads, decrease fuel consumption, and allow missions to be both less costly and more profitable.