The proposed design leverages existing technologies and is propelled primarily by a set of Stirling engines. The original Stirling engines used pressurized gas to push a piston, but this version will use uranium to effectively do the same. The new design, put together by the Glenn Research Center and Los Alamos National Laboratory, would use a uranium core along with eight Stirling engines.

Plutonium-238 had been the power source of choice for most of NASA’s deep space probes for the last few decades, but pretty much the last little bit of American plutonium went to Mars with the Curiosity rover. Plutonium production should ramp back up with some new funding, but they still need some other way. That’s why the new design uses more abundant uranium instead.

Watch the video below for a more detailed explanation of the proposed deep space engine.

What do you think of this unique deep space engine design?

[Source]

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A group of chemistry students at Horizon Science Academy in Cleveland were given an assignment to show how fission of Uranium-235 causes a chain reaction. It’s pretty easy to illustrate the nuclear chain reaction with a drawing. But that’s too boring.

The students tried to show the process with green and yellow Skittles. It made the point, but they wanted something bigger. So, 300 mouse traps and 600 ping pong balls later, the students threw one lone ping pong ball in… and, well, just watch.

The students hope to make it on a bigger scale. A Touchstone Energy Cooperatives commercial used 6000 mousetraps and 8000 ping pong balls.

Hopefully the students can beat that one.

[HAS]

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