Re: magsails:
Quote:
Originally Posted by sir_pudding
Other options might be cheaper in some applications if you are more worried about expense over velocity, but otherwise they seem like a pretty good choice in real-life too.
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They are pretty much the best real-life choice, for suitably broad definitions of "real life". We have yet to demonstrate superconductors that can operate at the required temperatures, but if you take modern high-T superconductors and say "like that only up to 350K" then you get very impressive performance.
Plasma sails, OTOH, require consumables, and I would wager that the concept proposals likely err on the side of optimistic specific impulses.
TeV