In the future, rockets and other spacecraft may be able to ditch their reliance on onboard fuel supplies and instead leverage the propulsion power of electrostatic fields.
A team headed by Charles Buhler, a former engineer at the U.S. National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA), has developed a propulsion system for use aboard spacecraft that utilizes electric power generated in an onboard vacuum chamber.
Buhler, who, during his tenure at NASA, worked on groundbreaking spacecraft designs, including the Space Shuttle, the International Space Station, and the Hubble Space Telescope, is reportedly well-versed in the innovative use and management of electrostatic energy. Buhler now co-leads a private company that focuses on the development of new and innovative propulsion systems and technologies.
Buhler says that their newly developed electrostatic energy system is not ready for a test deployment and that further development and testing will rely on future partnerships and additional funding. But he is optimistic.
“It will be this force that we will use to propel objects for the 1000 years…until the next thing comes,” he says.
