AIAA-95-2896

FOUNDATIONS OF OPTICS TECHNOLOGY FOR MARS

COLONIZATION, PAID ASTRONAUTICS, ENERGY
MILLENNIUM, INTERPLANETARY/INTERSTELLAR
SHUTTLES
J. H. Bloomer*, DISCRAFT Associates, Portland, OR

For
31
st
AIAA/ASME/SAE/ASEE JOINT PROPULSION CONFERENCE AND EXHIBIT, SAN DIEGO, CA.

Date
July 10-12, 1995

Site
Sheraton Harbor Island

Copyright 1995 by John H. Bloomer. Published by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics,
Inc. with permission.







*Member AIAA
Page i

CONTENTS:
FOUNDATIONS OF OPTICS TECHNOLOGY FOR MARS COLONIZATION, PAID ASTRONAUTICS, ENERGY
MILLENNIUM, INTERPLANETARY/INTERSTELLAR SHUTTLES

Pg.
ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................................................... 1
1. INTRODUCTION: PROPULSION AND CIVILIZATION ............................................................................................ 1
2. HIGHWAYS IN THE SKY ....................................................................................................................................... 3
3. V/STOL AMPHIBIOUS AIRCRAFT RUNABOUT FAMILY CARS ........................................................................... 6
4. PUBLIC AND PRIVATE TRANSPORTATION TO THE PLANETS .............................................................................. 7
5. THE BEGINNING: BEAMING POWER FROM ORBIT VIA ADVANCED (LIQUID) LASER OPTICS ............................ 7
6. MACROLASER SELF-SUBSIDY ............................................................................................................................. 8
6A. STARFLIGHT. ..................................................................................................................................................... 10
7. TRANSCENDING CHINESE ROCKETRY ........................................................................................................... 11
8. NEW FREEDOM FOR SPECIFIC IMPULSE: STARPUMPED MACROLASERS DRIVING LASERPOWERED
REMOTE (PARTICLE-ACCELERATOR) ELECTRICROCKET MOTORS (LREMS)..................................................... 12
9. SPACE-BASED SOLAR/STELLAR MACROLASERS ............................................................................................... 13
10. CHARACTERISTICS OF LIQUID SPACE OPTICS ................................................................................................... 14
11. MATHEMATICO-PHYSICAL FOUNDATIONS OF LIQUID SPACE OPTICS............................................................. 15
12. LIS DIFFERENTIAL EQUATION .......................................................................................................................... 21
13. THE FUNDAMENTAL (MATHEMATICAL) EXPRESSION OF LIQUID SPACE OPTICS ............................................ 24
14. CHARACTERISTICS OF SEHS-POWERED NONSELF-CONTAINED VS. CHINESE ROCKETRY.......................... 24
15. THREE DAYS TO MARS BY MACROLASER-SUPPLIED 1 g FERRYBOAT ........................................................... 26
16. COLONIZING MARS: CELESTIAL ENGINEERING TO CREATE BREATHABLE O
2
.................................................. 29
17. CELESTIAL ENGINEERING: CREATING OCEANS ON MARS BY MELTING PERMAFROST ................................... 30
18. FIRST STELLAR FLYBY PROBES .......................................................................................................................... 31
19. FIRST TWO-WAY INTERSTELLAR MANNED EXPEDITION .................................................................................. 33
20. SEED SEHS WEIGHT & SIZE FOR INTERPLANETARY/INTERSTELLAR USE ...................................................... 33
21. SEED EXPONENTIAL GROWTH PERIOD FOR INTERSTELLAR APPLICATION ................................................... 35
22. ADVANCE STUDY OF THE TARGET STARS VICINITY ......................................................................................... 36
23. TOTAL POWER DELIVERED BY THE SUN-ORBITING PERMANENT SEHS ....................................................... 36
24. RATIO OF GWT. OF ACCELERATOR PKG. TO GWT. OF ASSOCIATED PAYLOAD ............................................... 36
25. INTERSTELLAR SEH SPACESHIP ASSEMBLY EN ROUTE BY ROBOTS (AUTOMATION) ....................................... 36
26. ALPHA-CENTAURI-CIRCLING COCOONED LAUNCH PACKAGE FOR ASTRONAUT RETURN ........................... 37
27. MINIMUM SIZE OF LAUNCH-FROM ALPHA CENTAURI (L.A.C.) ROCKET PACKAGE ENCLOSING
EARTH-ASTRONAUT-RETURN COCOON (STOPPABLE WITH SUN-ORBITING SEHS)...................................... 38
Page ii

28. TOTAL QUANTITY OF STOPPABLE PAYLOADS TO BE SENT TO A.C. IF ALL A.C.-CIRCLING
SEHS ACCELERATOR MATERIAL IS TO BE SENT FROM THE SOLAR SYSTEM ................................................. 38
29. POSSIBLE MINIMUM QUANTITY TOTAL STOPPABLE A.C.-GOING TOOL-&-SUPPLIES PAYLOADS IF
EARTH-RETURN SEHS IS MANUFACTURED (NOT, ASSEMBLED ONLY) IN ALPHA CENTAURI ORBIT ................ 39
30. GALLIUM COST AND EXPECTED COST REDUCTION ......................................................................................... 39
31. RULES, ARBITRARY AND NOT ........................................................................................................................... 40



Page iii

ILLUSTRATIONS:
FOUNDATIONS OF OPTICS TECHNOLOGY FOR MARS COLONIZATION, PAID ASTRONAUTICS, ENERGY
MILLENNIUM, INTERPLANETARY/INTERSTELLAR SHUTTLES

FIG. Pg.
1. BEANSTALK UMBILICAL WITH AERODYNAMIC SHROUD UNITS TO 80000 FEET ALTITUDE .............................. 5
2. AEROSPACE SUPERSHUTTLE .............................................................................................................................. 6
3. PULSE-RAMJET BLASTWAVE JET ENGINE........................................................................................................... 8
4. MULTI-ORBIT SOLAR MACROLASER ................................................................................................................... 9
5. ONE-MILE DIAMETER VARIABLE-FOCUS DIFFRACTION-LIMITED ORBITAL PRIMARY MIRROR ....................... 16
6. LIQUID SURFACE IN LOWERED GRAVITY ......................................................................................................... 18
7. LIQUID 1-G AND ZERO-G CONTACT ANGLES ................................................................................................... 18
8. LIQUID OPTIC IN ZERO - GRAVITY .................................................................................................................... 19
9. ERROR DUE TO FINITE LOAD ............................................................................................................................ 19
10. ERROR VS. F/NO. FOR SEVERAL APERTURES AT 10
-12
G LOAD ..................................................................... 25
11. ERROR VS. AXIAL LOAD N FOR SEVERAL LIQUID GALLIUM MIRRORS .......................................................... 26
12. ERROR VS. AXIAL LOAD FOR 300 INCH F/I OPTICS OF VARIOUS LIQUIDS ....................................................... 27
13. INTERSTELLAR SHIP IN ACCELERATION PHASE ................................................................................................ 32
14. ELECTROMAGNETIC NON-SELF-CONTAINED ROCKET MOTOR........................................................................ 33
15. FABRICATION OF MACRO-OPTICS IN SPACE .................................................................................................... 34
16. STOPPABLE SHIP IN BRAKING APPROACH TO TARGET STAR ........................................................................... 37



Page 1

ABSTRACT
Evidently post-Sixties earthly aerospace technology owns the optical tools necessary and sufficient to
access practically unlimited solar/stellar energy in space, condition it and beam it coherently down (1) to
planets like earth for manufacturing, agriculture, housing, education, recreation, medicine, science, and
(2) into space for opening up the interplanetary/interstellar era of propulsion, exploration and
colonization. Heretofore macro energy specialists have concentrated on nuclear technology to (1) first
create continuous local starlike processes of energy production then (2) seek to control them. Beginning
1966 this author/inventor recommended instead accessing, controlling and directing significant fractions
of the output of actual stars themselves (starting with the sun), using advanced visible, IR, UV laser
system optics. Potentially thereby the total problem would be halved. However cost of conventional such
(visible/IR/UV) optics is totally prohibitive because of the continuous extreme geometrical accuracy
required over extremely large (optical primary) surface areas. Authors suggested new science of
capillary-controlled epihydrostatic (or surface-static) geometrical space optics liquid space optics-
theoretically overcomes this objection, offering extremes of size (diameter up to one mile or more), of
accuracy (beyond diffraction limit) and of economy (self-forming). Key mathematical expression is the
authors fundamental relation of liquid space optics, which is a direct result of the variational research
of Dr. Ta Li into configurations and perturbations of liquids in tanks in zero-g. Applied to geometrical
optics, Lis results permit analysis and synthesis of all but arbitrarily large optical (reflective and refractive)
surfaces in space. Application of such surfaces to space-based (zero-g, i.e., flown in an orbit or
unpowered trajectory) lasers and laser systems, permits design of up-to-interstellar-order, Stellar-Energy-
Handling Satellites or Spacecraft (SEHS). Such systems are self-formed and because of presumed power
marketability, potentially self-paid (plus evidently in principle, exponentially profitable). Proceeds and
energy of these macrolasers should be convertible into virtually unlimited wealth of essentially
arbitrary kinds, leading if desired to a (material) millennium. Similarly interplanetary shuttles and
repeatable relativistic interstellar expeditions, should become routine, by indicated grossly expanded
limits in resultant propulsion technology, leading logically to early exploration and colonization of both
solar and extrasolar planets.

1. INTRODUCTION: PROPULSION AND CIVILIZATION
Propulsion is primarily concerned with the collection and controlled release of energy, as is evidently
civilization itself. Quoting Erb (Ref. 1), The utilization of energy is a surrogate for economic productivity
and quality of life. Relatedly ONeill says (paraphrase from Ref. 2): Ecological pressure of populations is
inversely proportional to wealth.
Money is energy. Money is also the lifeblood of civilization. Federal Reserve Bank (of course not
federal, not a reserve and not a bank) debt-money (actual purpose apparently that of
circumventing the U.S. Constitution to rob and enslave most Americans) is diseased money. Therefore
Page 2

western civilization currently has a blood disease. New energy is new (wealth) money. Therefore the
current proposed new energy system is also a proposal whereby society can rid itself of its (planned
fatality, mathematically inevitable) blood disease and return itself to health (Refs 3,4,5).
Astronautics today is in a parlous state of decline, as is the American civilization itself, evidently
respectively due to the same reasons: (1) Loaning all new money into circulation as an interest-bearing
debt (to circumvent the U.S. Constitution), a system which creates the principal only and never the
interest; i.e., the total debt is always greater than the total money-supply, forcing constant borrowing to
keep the system alive. Eventually the process must become mathematically unworkable as society,
mortgaged to the maximum, can no longer afford to borrow. Meantime the debt creates extreme stress
on natural persons struggling to meet impossible money obligations, resulting in constant rise in the cost
of living, layoffs, family breakdowns, increased drug and alcohol use, increase in crime, general moral
breakdown, cancelling of spaceflight and space exploration programs, cancelling of advanced research &
technology programs of all kinds; (2) Setting up a few large banks to benefit in power or control over all
American money and property as the unpayable debt compounds and as general ability to meet the
constantly rising cost of living diminishes, as also the standard of living drops, as finally the people
become debt-slaves.
Consequently astronautics it is claimed holds the key to its own salvation and to that of society itself: That
key is honest money, which astronautics can create, does create, will create as it accesses/unlocks the
universes vast storehouse of energy. The latter task is the subject of this current treatise.
Key current technical discovery is Ta Lis 1960 variational treatment of liquid-hydrogen physical and
surface chemistry in Apollo Spacecraft Second-Stage fuel tanks (Ref. 6). Lis results comprising the
foundations of zero-gravity capillary epihydrostatics (at least as applies to optics), after the term coined
in 1960 by his colleague, fellow North American Aviation scientist Elliott Benedikt (Ref. 7) led to authors
1965 precise synthetic/analytic formulation of liquid space optics (Ref. 8). The latter consists of
technology for fabricating ultra-low-cost, self-forming, vast, precision (diffraction-limited), unfurlable,
liquid-plastic (nominally Dow-Corning #200 silicone)-surfaced, liquid-metal (nominally pure gallium)-
plated, reflective (liquid membrane) optics and refractive (liquid) optics, in zero-g (orbit or
unpowered trajectory), respectively.
Todays space technology is severely energy-limited. The present is a proposal to use the new optics to
harness the energy of stars for propulsion as well as for consumer free electricity, and simultaneously
to harness the mass of the cooler heavenly bodies for raw materials. Consequently it is a proposal to use
the new optics to initiate both the interstellar era in space and a quantum-leap in personal fortunes on
earth.

Page 3

2. HIGHWAYS IN THE SKY
Cheap, affordable airflight (in mostly private vehicles) and spaceflight (initially in mostly public vehicles)
would evidently be the analogue of the historical American highway-building system, whereby in
payment for highway construction goods and services, money was created/floated in the united States
of America* in the last century, such that the u.S.A. spent themselves into prosperity. In a similar
fashion, palpable advantages to the public of highways in the sky would be a higher standard of living,
lower prices, abolishing the debt-money-linked/unConstitutionally-applied, rigorously
unnecessary/endlessly entrapping, personal income tax (a direct tax, unapportioned, therefore needs be
voluntary or unConstitutional), high employment, dollar buys more, no inflation, affordable health care,
airflight and spaceflight for all, ever decreasing need for social programs as most American natural
persons would be able to provide for themselves (Refs 3,4,5 op. cit.).
The united States had a sound, productive economy able to afford advanced invention and advanced
(aerospace and other) technology, for example when they had a wealth-based (rather than a debt-
based) money system. In that system, incidentally, implemented as well as based on gold & silver
(convenient but not necessary), money was spent into circulation, debt-free, to pay for building and
maintaining roads, a benefit to every American person.
Technology introduced here has as its main purpose the automatic collection and control/redirection of
solar/stellar energy, in narrow, coherent (laser) beams, both for civilizations (unbounded, free, main-
source) utility power (therefore wealth), and also for astronautics (unprecedented, main-source) shuttle
interplanetary and easy interstellar propulsion power (therefore a wholly new era on earth is implied,
politically, economically and socially as well as technically).
The dream following may well be the one whereby we will rescue civilization, pave our streets in gold,
colonize the planets and visit the stars.
It is herein proposed that the transport (aerospace) industry should ask American natural persons to once
again instruct the united States government (in the same fashion as in the last century), to offer to every
American natural person (first, then to the world) free use of highways (this time, in the sky), the latter to
be paid for and maintained once again in a currency based (Constitutionally) on wealth and not on debt.
The combination of a wealth-money system with free aerospace- highway construction, should once
again (as in the last century) point the way to riches for society this time such as to project earths entire
civilization into the (literal, energy or wealth-money) Millennium; i.e., American and other natural
persons would spend wealth-money (not debt-money as at present) that was put into circulation to pay
for roads (or highways in the sky), nationally, globally and solar-system-wide a benefit to every
earthborn natural person.

*so-called in the Declaration of Independence

Page 4






FIG. 1A
A A
CHORD
CHORD/4 = AERODYNAMIC CENTER
Wind direction
SECTION AA


TO GROUND
TO SOLAR-CELL SEA (DISC-
PLANFORM BALLOON @
80,000 FT. ALTITUDE

WEATHERVANE/AEROFAIRING
SLEEVE (HELIUM BALLOON
500-LONG SECTION)
SWIVEL BEARING
SLEEVE BEARING
UMBILICAL
PACKING (HOLDS
2 CU WIRES)
UMBILICAL-SUPPORT
BEARING (MOUNTED IN
BALLOON)
NOTE I: SECTION WILL ALIGN
ITSELF WITH PREVAILING WIND
AT THAT ALTITUDE;
AERODYNAMIC FAIRING OFFERS
1/40
TH
THE DRAG THAT ROUND
UMBILICAL OF IDENTICAL
FRONTAL (WIND-DIRECTION)
PROJECTED AREA, WOULD
OFFER
NOTE II: EACH SECTION IS
PRESSURIZED WITH HELIUM &
FITTED AT EACH END W/ A
HELIUM-TIGHT BEARING
AROUND THE UMBILICAL,
THUS EACH SECTION ACTS
LIKE A MINIATURE HELIUM
BALLOON
NOTE III: BEARING-RING
WASHER (EACH) HARD-
MOUNTED TO UMBILICAL (CF.,
WELDED); THUS EACH SECTION
SUPPORTS WEIGHT OF LENGTH
OF UMBILICAL PASSING
THROUGH THAT SECTION
Page 5































22 mi.
80,000 ft.
1 mi.
22,240 mi.
POWER CONDITIONING,
DISTRIBUTION PLANT ON
SURFACE
80,000-FT.-LONG
UMBILICAL TO
TAKE COLLECTED
POWER TO
GROUND
WAFER-SHAPED, FLAT,
SHALLOW, CIRCULAR-
PLANFORM BALLOON
(HELIUM) COVERED WITH
(SEA OF) SOLAR CELLS @
80,000 FT. ALTITUDE
LASER OR MICROWAVE
ELECTROMAGNETIC BEAM FROM
ORBIT (@22,240 MI.)
LIQUID-SPACE-OPTIC BEAM-
FORMER OR OTHER BEAM-
FORMER (GENERATES LASER OR
MICROWAVE BEAM)
SOLAR COLLECTOR MIRROR IN
GEOSYNCHRONOUS EARTH ORBIT
(GEO, 22,240-MI. HIGH) OR OTHER
COLLECTION ORBITAL APPARATUS
FIGURE. 1B. Beanstalk umbilical with aerodynamic shroud units to 80000 feet altitude
Page 6


3. V/STOL AMPHIBIOUS AIRCRAFT RUNABOUT FAMILY CARS
Present technology purports to outfit all interested American natural persons (first) with equivalent
runabout family cars of the air, designed for operating on highways in the sky. These highways built
and maintained by the traditional/historical system of creating wealth-money that made our nation
great (vs. current system of debt-money) would consist of public (1) collision-avoidance beacons, and
(2) orbital solar-energy, free fillup, battery-charging (for propulsion), beam-fed solar-cell-sea (Fig. 1)
service stations in the sky at 80,000 ft altitude for all highway motorists (Ref. 9).
The present united States debt-money system and not a lack of technology (at all) evidently is the
responsible barrier that prevents most American natural persons from owning and operating such nation-
wandering, globetrotting private (backyard-based) Vertical-or-Shortfield, Take-Off and Landing (V/STOL)
electrical aircraft, garageable, amenable to automatic control and collision-avoidance electronics,
amphibious, supersafe and highly efficient (Fig. 2).







FIG. 2.
AEROSPACE SUPERSHUTTLE: BLASTWAVE-JET-POWERED AIRCRAFT TO 80,000 FT.;
STEAMROCKET-POWERED SPACECRAFT ABOVE 80,000
Page 7

4. PUBLIC AND PRIVATE TRANSPORTATION TO THE PLANETS
Almost all planets and their moons, respectively, are amenable to permanent mounting of orbital-
sunpumped-macrolaser-fed, solar-cell-sea, electrical-power filling stations, on their surfaces or in their
atmospheres. If a given celestial body has a dense atmosphere as do earth and Venus, for example
these filling stations would be tethered high in the atmosphere on special flat, wafer-shaped balloons
(Fig. 1). If a given body has a tenuous or nonexistent atmosphere like Mars or the moon these solar-
cell-sea service stations would be mounted on the bodys surface directly.
Electricrocket motors (ion or plasma) in non-self-contained (macrolaser-fed) propulsion systems, would
drive ferryboat interplanetary spacecraft, where acceleration at 1 g would be employed for half the
trip, followed by deceleration at 1 g for the other half, getting us out to most nearby planets and their
moons in two or three days.
Rocketmotor exhaust velocity for maximum fuel efficiency, would be adjusted to be just greater than
ferryboat spaceship terminal velocity at midcourse.
Purchase, ownership and maintenance of family cars of the air, would be the owners individual
responsibilities. However, in lieu of actual roadbuilding of conventional highways, free filling stations of
the air would be erected and maintained full of stored, available electrical energy (by macrolasers),
built by national contractors for wealth-money payments, traded in this historical fashion for injecting
new wealth-money into the economy.
Thus (free) Service Stations In the Sky, would be established on or above most planets and their moons,
and operated by the (debt-free, wealth-money-based) nation itself, as a public service (comparable to
superhighways).

5. THE BEGINNING: BEAMING POWER FROM ORBIT VIA ADVANCED (LIQUID) LASER
OPTICS
Lasers, because providing immensely tighter, narrower, longer range beams, must be preferred in the
long run, for most purposes in space, to masers, as most authors agree (Ref. 10). But laser diffraction-
limited transmitter optics (just reversed, maximum-quality astronomical-telescope primary-mirror
systems in large size) have heretofore been very difficult, expensive or impossible to build particularly
for space. In 66, though, there appeared this authors solution (declassified Nov. 65 Ref. 11), based
essentially on introducing very shallow, static, capillary-boundary-constrained, reflective, liquid-metal-
plated, liquid-plastic pools onto interior surfaces of rigidized balloons erected (inflated) in orbit (Refs
12, 13, 14) somewhat in the fashion of Echo (Ref. 15). These pools in capillary (zero-g) fashion, pull
themselves their own surfaces into precision optical mirrors (as retouched by deliberately-introduced
static masses providing self-gravitation (Refs 16, 17). Evidently this stable, simple, universal and
permanent approach to retouching should absorb, expand, economize and systematize the essentially
limited and expensive new adaptive optics method much in the news of late (Ref. 18).
Page 8

6. MACROLASER SELF-SUBSIDY
To initiate circulation of wealth-money by creation of same (via uS govts spending it into existence to
build superhighways in the sky thus using it to replace and retire todays debt-money), this author
recommends first development of a (profit-making) excursion-bus/excursion-boat into space system.
Central to this scheme would be this inventors (proprietary) VTOL, 5,000-passenger, circular-planform
aerospace SUPERSHUTTLE vehicle (Fig. 2), evidently capable of reflexively financing its (dedicated)
MACROLASER (thereby bootstrapping the worlds first general purpose orbital MACROLASER (this
inventors loss leader)).
Capable of hauling sightseeing tourists to synchronous orbit and return at a suggested price of $200 (1994
FRN) per seat, SUPERSHUTTLE both VTOL aircraft and beam-climbing spacecraft would operate in
the atmosphere on BLASTWAVE (Ref. 19, Fig. 3), LPG-burning, jet engines, producing only water-vapor
as exhaust.


Likewise, as spacecraft, SUPERSHUTTLE would accept energy from a synchronous-orbiting, liquid-mirror
macrolaser system, tightened beam (Ref. 20, Fig. 4), driving its (SUPERSHUTTLEs) electric rockets
(steamrockets) which would exhaust water vapor as sole expellant.
Predicated on six excursions per day at 3 hours each (reaching Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO) at
approximately 1 g continuous acceleration/braking while leading the target sufficiently, might require
about 1 hour, as would of course the return), SUPERSHUTTLE if fully loaded at 5,000 passengers per
excursion would earn about $1 million gross profit per jaunt to GEO (inflatable dollars, 1994 FRN).
Presuming net profit of one-half after expenses, salaries, spares, repairs, maintenance, life-cycle costs,
etc. are accounted for and that perhaps half the natural persons on the planet might end up as
customers each SUPERSHUTTLE should earn about $1.2 billion per year, indefinitely (Ref. 21), in
inflatable dollars, 1994 FRN.


FIG. 3. PULSE-RAMJET BLASTWAVE JET ENGINE

Page 9



FIGURE 4
GIGAWATT RADIATIVE OPTICAL MACROELECTRONIC (GROM) MULTI-ORBIT SOLAR MACROLASER FOR
PROJECTING FOCUSABLE BEAM ENERGY-SUPPLY TO ACCELERATING INTERSTELLAR SPACECRAFT.
At the extreme left of the figure is the great solar-collecting mirror (60 miles in dia.), (1). CO
2
-type
macrolaser is shown symbolically, although in actual fact, a free-electron-type (variable-wavelength in
near-infrared and perhaps 4-5 times more efficient) laser will be used. The great solar-collecting mirror
focuses solar energy onto the semi-silvered collar-like pumping mechanism (9). Energy trapped by
multiple reflections in collar (9) is transferred to the transparent, hollow laser cylindrical cavity (8). Rod
(8) is maintained concentric with collar (9) by strut-supports (10). The laser cavity is filled with a gas which
absorbs the reflected solar energy and lases, i.e., transmits a coherent beam normal to the rods end-
surface mirrors. The end-mirror nearest the great solar mirror (1) is partially silvered, so that a portion of
the coherent energy in the rod continuously escapes. The escaping beam is diverged by secondary
lens (6). The latter is rigidly attached to laser-rod (8) and pump (9), by strut-supports (7). The diverged
coherent beam (4) illuminates the large (1-mile-diameter) liquid-surface primary mirror (3). High-
precision primary (3) is bordered by a rigid plastic-foam boundary-ring (2). Laser energy (5), focused by
reflection from primary (3), passes through the empty interior of collar (9) and emerges in the form of
focused high-energy coherent beam (11). The beam (11) supplies energy at or near its focus to disc-like
craft (12), which might carry a protected payload as shown at (13).
FIG. 4


1
5
6
10
2
3
9
8
11
12
13
4
7
Page 10

6A. STARFLIGHT.
Starflight propulsion is surely the anticipated acme of all (proposed human) experience, ably introduced
by Mallove and Matloff in their Starflight handbook (Ref. 22). These authors say, The big problem with
starflight is, of course, distance, and that is why the bulk of this handbook is devoted to methods of
interstellar propulsion. The ancillary problems of guidance and navigation, payload content, reliability,
and so on, though difficult, are relatively minor issues compared with the primary hurdle of attaining
speed (or its equivalent, sufficient energy source and sufficient specific impulse JHB) sufficient to reduce
to tolerable lengths transit times to the stars Starflight is not just very hard, it is very, very, very hard!
Right on, Gene and Greg!
Considering the history of interstellar propulsion investigations, the pioneers and their critics have had
this to say:
Von Hoerner, Sebastian, concludes (1963) Space travel, even in the most distant future, will be
confined completely to our own planetary system, and a similar conclusion will hold for any other
civilization, no matter how advanced it may be (Ref. 23); Purcell, Edward, says (1963): Let us consider
taking a trip to a place 12 light-years away, and back It is preposterous. And remember, our conclusions
are forced on us by the elementary laws of mechanics All this stuff about travelling around the universe
in space suits except for local exploration belongs back where it came from, on the cereal box. (Ref.
24).
Marx, G., concludes (July 2, 1966) The laws of conservation of energy and momentum (do not
necessarily) forbid the visiting of other planetary systems in the human lifespan (Ref. 25); Bloomer, J.H.
propounds (Oct. 13, 1966) We can send a probe to Alpha Centauri before 2000 A.D. Shortly following
the return of data from an Alpha Centauri probe, we may feasibly plan to send astronauts on round trips
to thisandotherstarsbefore 2100 A.D. (Ref. 33); Dyson, Freeman J. says (October 1968) I predict
that about 200 years from now, barring a catastrophe, the first interstellar voyages will begin (Ref. 26);
Norem, Philip C., says (June 1969) An overall system employing a vehicle with a solar sail, a large laser
array, and employing interactions with the interstellar magnetic fieldiscapable of roundtrip
interstellarjourney of 75 to 150 years (Ref. 27); Forward, Robert L. says (1976): a more practical
method would be to carry along some mass to use as propellant and just use the laser beam to energize
the propellant (Ref. 28); Jackson&Whitmire say (1978) The laser rocketcan also accelerate directly
into the beam since the ship uses the laser beam only as a source of energy and not momentum (Ref.
29); Weiss, Pirri and Kemp say (1979): In(one way of)beaming energy to a propulsion system with a
large power lasera thermal rocket system uses energy beamed from a remote laser to heat a chemically
inert propellant (Ref. 30).
Oliver, B.M. says (Oct. 87): interstellar travelif such travel is to be accomplished in a human lifetime,
the energy requirements are enormousOur intent is to dispel the notionthat progress in rocket
technology can reduce by orders of magnitude the energy needed for interstellar flight (Ref. 31).
Page 11

Well certainly see that Barney Oliver was right about that! However, to reduce what I regard as his and
others unwarranted trepidation over energy (or the lack thereof), I submit that adequate (nuclear)
energy apparently is available to us after all, but just not from the (domestic, terrestrial) source weve set
our hopes on ever since the dramatic demonstrations of the Forties!
Prime rocket figure-of-merit is of course specific impulse. Specific impulse in seconds is conveniently
calculated as a function of exhaust velocity in meters/sec by dividing latter by acceleration of gravity (at
earth sea-level), about 10 m/sec
2
(Ref. 22, op. cit.).
Hermann Koelles reliable text on astronautical engineering (Ref. 32), makes very clear that for a
reasonably sized (i.e., single-stage) interstellar rocket, the exhaust velocity must slightly exceed the
desired terminal velocity of the rocket.
But if the latter is nominal minimum for interstellar flight say, one-quarter the speed of light, this
implies a specific impulse of about 7,500,000 seconds.

7. TRANSCENDING CHINESE ROCKETRY
Principle of Alpha Centauri Probe (Ref. 33) was to transcend Chinese rocketry (or conventional
rocketry, in which all mass and all energy are carried on any given ship), by instead supplying all energy to
an interstellar rocket via starpumped (macro-) laserbeam. The latter is dispatched steadily (continuous-
wave) from afar (from orbit of earth, sun or star). The energy used to pump the laser would have been
furnished by a very large, associated nearby, stellar collector mirror.
Such a concept required a new optics and a new kind of rocket motor.
Conventional optical technology applied to the problem of fabricating the one-mile-wide and larger,
precision mirrors needed in orbit, would rapidly exhaust all the resources of all the countries on earth
even just trying to build such optics on the ground, let alone trying to build them in orbit (which would of
course be orders of magnitude more expensive).
No less discouraging would have been the attempt to apply conventional rocketry to interstellar flight.
Conventional rocket motors will not even approach an I
sp
of 7,500,000 seconds. For examples, (Ref. 22,
op. cit.), Hydrogen-Oxygen Rockets deliver I
sp
= 460 sec; Oxygen-Beryllium-Hydrogen Rockets would
deliver 705 seconds; ion rockets have been built to deliver specific impulses from 2,500 sec to 10,000 sec,
and at a theoretically very best might deliver ultimately 400,000 seconds. Fission nuclear rockets,
depending on core, deliver 500-700 sec. Fusion nuclear rockets would deliver 2,500 to 200,000 sec.
The absolute destruction of matter is in theory the only reaction more energetic than fusion; yet putting
aside the engineering problems (many of which have been solved by Robert Forward and others Ref. 22,
op. cit.), we could still hope to derive from this process only about 140 times the energy available in
hydrogen fusion. This would not be nearly enough (Ref. 24, op. cit.), to both send the astronauts out and
get them home alive.
Page 12

By why do the exhaust particles have to be accelerated by a (chemical or nuclear) reaction (aside from ion
rocketry)? Whats to keep us from using an actual laboratory particle accelerator as rocketmotor (and
supplying the energy from afar by liquid-optic macrolaserbeam)?

8. NEW FREEDOM FOR SPECIFIC IMPULSE: STARPUMPED MACROLASERS DRIVING
LASERPOWERED REMOTE (PARTICLE-ACCELERATOR) ELECTRICROCKET MOTORS
(LREMS)
If the particle-accelerator is (perhaps best i.e., lightest) a linear accelerator (Refs 34, 35, 36), then we
might be deterred by: One of the chief drawbacks of the linear accelerator for acceleration to very high
energies is its enormous power consumptionFor example, a 100-gap, 100 MeV accelerator in which the
operating frequency is 200 Mc, the stable phase angle is 60
o
, and in which gaps of 5 f capacity are
resonated by circuits having a Q of 50,000 will consume approximately 7 megawatts of power!
However, LIQUID-OPTIC ORBITAL MACROLASER chief advantage along with advantages of narrow beam
and advancing focus, is perhaps its truly enormous and practically unlimited CW power output (derived,
after all, straightforwardly from the sun or other star). Hence linear accelerators (either electron or
proton type) may be ideal choice for relativistic (interstellar) single-stage rocketmotors. As particles are
accelerated, their velocity v
p
, increases according to the relation
2 / 1
2
2
0
1
1
1
(
(
(
(
(

|
|
|
|
|
.
|

\
|
+
=
c M
T
c
v
p
,
where T is the kinetic energy of the particle being accelerated and M
0
c
2
is its rest energy, c being the
velocity of light (Ref. 35).
For T much greater than the rest energy, ,
c
v
p
1 . (Ref. 35, op. cit.)
Preaccelerators for linacs are often high-voltage dc or pulsed-dc accelerators, operating at from a few
hundred kilovolts to a few million volts. Protons and heavier ions have rest energies (masses) of one to
many giga electron volts so that they emerge from the preaccelerator with velocities only a small fraction
of c. Electrons have a mass of 511 keV so that even a preaccelerator of only 80 keV boosts their velocity
to 0.5c. The arrangements needed for efficient generation of accelerating waves depend markedly on the
desired wave velocity and the designs of linacs for protons or heavier ions and for electrons differ
markedly. (Ref. 35, op. cit.).

Page 13

9. SPACE-BASED SOLAR/STELLAR MACROLASERS
Suppose as noted our optics are fabricated of liquid surfaces in orbit (or unpowered trajectory), using
capillary (surface tension, adhesion, cohesion, contact-angle) effects according to the principles of liquid
space optics.
As has been shown in numerous studies (Ref. 21, op. cit., 37), such systems can bootstrap themselves
into orbit, under their own power, in a modular fashion, providing their own financing by selling collected
and redirected (laserbeamed) solar power.
Principle here is that solar/stellar energy is to be accessed in practically unlimited, desired amount in
orbit, by conventional aluminized-mylar (paraboloidal) solar-collector mirrors (say, 60 or more miles in
diameter Ref. 33). The latter are focused on (or pump) a liquid-optic multi-orbital (probably CO
2
)
laser system, which converts at about 1% efficiency to a highly tightened (narrowed inversely
proportional to primary diameter) laserbeam.
Primary diameter may be one mile or more. Diffraction-limited quality of such a beam was shown by
present author feasibly to obtain, by application of a treatise of Dr. Ta Li (Refs 6, 8 op. cit.), also by
practical limitation of the cumulative residual accelerations that the (liquid-surfaced) optics are subject
to.
Essentially, (power-beaming) solar (or more generally, stellar) macrolasers derive from a suggestion of
C.H. Townes & R.N. Schwartz (Ref. 20, op. cit.), laser co-inventors, on interstellar communication. Townes
and Schwartz recommended placing your laser to fire backward at the focal plane (or surface) of an
astronomical telescope, whereby the (reversed) instrument projects a coherent beam with spread
inversely proportional to primary diameter (if latter is diffraction-limited i.e., theoretically
unimprovable or correct to the Raleigh limit of /4 at every point on its surface for the projected laser
light.)
Cost of fabrication of such given-quality say diffraction-limited (solid) optical surfaces (mirrors or
lenses) on the ground, is about proportional to the fourth power of the primary (principal) optic diameter.
Thus an earthbound observatory featuring a diffraction limited 30-inch-diameter (about the maximum
practical diffraction-limited instrument on earth) glass greenlight reflector, and costing, say, $10 million
(94 FRN), would cost about $2 10
8
trillion if enlarged to one mile in diameter while maintaining the
same surface quality (or about $200 billion trillion on earth by this rule.)
Consequently other approaches such as computerized, segmented, sensor-feedback, adaptive optics
have been taken for fabricating large-diameter, astronomical-quality, solid-optics (usually reflectors) on
the ground (Ref. 18, op. cit.). However, adaptive optics complexity and cost limitations are still at best
evidently within perhaps only one or two orders of magnitude of the older, conventional art, which would
indicate still a minimum cost of about $2 billion trillion for a one-mile-dia. primary, diffraction-limited,
solid mirror on the ground.
In space, as demonstrated recently by the Hubble Telescope example, conventional (solid) optics costs
are going to be multiplied again, say by a factor of 20 to 200 times, indicating there is no older technology
Page 14

known today which could practically deliver, say, a 1-mile-diameter greenlight diffraction-limited
astronomical telescope mirror in orbit.
But it is precisely this order of primary mirror size, quality and location (space) thats proposed by the
present inventor, for a Townes-type power-beaming (not communication), inverted astronomical
optical telescope in orbit. Latter would rely on authors 65 invention of liquid space optics [rejected by
USPATOFF in 70 as obvious, oblivious to the earlier (65) threat by USAF against inventor of fine and
imprisonment for disclosure of this obvious invention; USAF lifted its secrecy order when inventor
showed invention had already been disclosed to every major library on earth anyway (Ref. 11, op. cit.)].
Other element surfaces (i.e., secondary mirror, laser cavity-end reflector mirrors) of this (multi-orbit)
optical system, will also be liquid, as will surface of the primary mirror itself.

10. CHARACTERISTICS OF LIQUID SPACE OPTICS
Outlines of liquid space optics and solar energy handling satellites or spacecraft (SEHS) technology
have been sketched by the present author in six earlier publications (Refs 8, 9, 17, 21, 33, 37), to which
the reader is referred for general introduction.
General principles are those of permitting capillary forces ruling liquids in zero-gravity (orbit or
unpowered trajectory) to do the work of fabrication of large astronomical optical surfaces mirrors or
lenses. Above studies have shown surface errors locally and about the boundary can nominally be held to
less than those at the threshold of diffraction limited resolution for visible/IR/UV optics even on the order
of a mile or more in diameter. Quality of liquid optical surfaces already is ideal, a perfection which all
lapped and polished solid optical surfaces can only approach. Optical substrates in orbit or unpowered
trajectory can be expanded and rigidized from very compact and convenient packages according to well-
known military and other tested techniques.
Energy of the sun and stars can be collected, manipulated and redirected in any practical quantity, and
with ultimate precision, by sufficiently large, astronomical-quality, zero-gravity, capillary or
epihydrostatic optics. Both civilization itself and advanced astronautics depend critically on energy. That
energy is superabundant in space. Collecting, handling and redirecting solar/stellar energy is perhaps the
only bar both to advanced civilization and to advanced astronautics. It is believed joint invention of the
laser and of liquid space optics, may offer the desired solution for both, one that has been obscured
heretofore by excitement over discovery of nuclear physics.
For diameter size of astronomical optics there is no substitute. However cost of given-quality (e.g.,
diffraction-limited) such optics on earth goes up, as noted above, by the fourth power of the diameter. In
diffraction-limited case, this is due to difficulty of grinding a given solid surface to a /4 maximum
tolerance overall while polishing it sufficiently to result in a uniform Beilby layer or surface consisting of
irregular collections of small peaks or pits none of them more than a molecule or two in height or depth.
In the formation of such polished layers on solids we have the natural phenomenon corresponding to the
smoothing out of liquid irregularities under surface tension. For clean circular boundaries at fixed
Page 15

azimuthal inclination and zero constant acceleration therefore a sufficient amount of clean, liquid when
introduced will by energy principles exhibit a concave or convex spherical surface with fixed contact angle
at the boundary.
Such surfaces are very nearly what is needed for (reversible) astronomical telescope primary and
secondary mirrors. Contemplated is introducing a liquid plastic, which may or may not remain liquid
depending on application and plating it with a liquid metal, which may or may not remain liquid
depending on application. Probably best liquid plastic is Dow-Corning #200 silicone and best liquid metal
is ultrapure gallium, although many experiments are needed.
Astronomical reflective primary and secondary optics are generally spherical (Maksutov) or nearly
spherical (Cassegrainian or Newtonian, i.e. needing only a slight retouching to generate required
paraboloidal or hyperboloidal surface). Using an expression derived from Ta Lis General Dynamics (60,
San Diego) formulation of deviation of (liquid-solid circular-boundary) liquid surfaces from a spherical
liquid-vapor interface under given net axial acceleration, it is possible to show for nearly-unaccelerated
space systems in thermodynamic equilibrium that we are facing a standard isoperimetric problem (with
mobile upper limit) in the calculus of variations. Couching the rapidly-converging series solution (given by
Li) to the resulting differential equation in both physico-chemical and optical constants, one can show
arbitrary (integrated) figuring gravitational acceleration may be practically applied to such (reflective)
liquid surface by deliberately sculpting and emplacing required axially symmetric masses behind the
optics (in zero-gravity i.e., orbit or unpowered trajectory in space). See Fig. 5.
A liquid space optical (power-beaming) orbital macrolaser apparatus, relies essentially (as above) on
introducing very shallow, static, capillary-boundary-constrained, reflective, liquid-metal-plated, liquid-
plastic pools onto interior surfaces of rigidized balloons erected (inflated) in orbit (Refs 8, 12, 13, 14
Op. Cit.), somewhat in the fashion of the Echo balloon satellite (Ref. 15, Op. Cit.). See Figs 6, 7.
These pools in capillary (zero-g) fashion, pull themselves their own surfaces into precision optical
mirrors or lens surfaces [as retouched be deliberately introduced static masses adjacent to and behind
the optics, providing self-gravitation for figuring (Ref. 8, Fig. 5)].

11. MATHEMATICO-PHYSICAL FOUNDATIONS OF LIQUID SPACE OPTICS
Final development of the ultimate general mathematical tool of zero-gravity epihydrostatical optics, is
due to a treatment by Dr. Ta Li (Ref. 6). The following development by Li, illustrated in Figure 8, is
characterized by liquids in containers whose interiors are in the form of surfaces of revolution.
o
lv
, o
ls
, and o
sv
are respective surface tensions at the liquid-vapor, liquid-solid, and solid-vapor interfaces,
in dyne/cm; in the plane of Fig. 8, the horizontal boundary is the point intersection of the surface
(liquid-vapor interface) with the toroidal annulus shown. u = u(x) is the vapor-annulus interface, v = v(x) is
the liquid-annulus interface, and z = z(x) is the liquid-vapor interface, where u=u(x) and v=v(x) are known
and z=z(x) is sought.
Page 16


3


1


2


1
1


4


5


9


8


7


6


1
0


1
2


1
3


2
7

1
4


3
4


2
5


2
6


3
0


2
8


2
2


2
1


2
3

2
4


3
1


3
3


3
2


2
9


1
9


1
8


1
5


1
7

2
0


1
6


F
I
G
.

5
.

O
N
E
-
M
I
L
E

D
I
A
M
E
T
E
R

V
A
R
I
A
B
L
E
-
F
O
C
U
S

D
I
F
F
R
A
C
T
I
O
N
-
L
I
M
I
T
E
D

O
R
B
I
T
A
L

P
R
I
M
A
R
Y

M
I
R
R
O
R

(
B
E
G
I
N

C
E
N
T
R
A
L

S
E
C
T
I
O
N
)



Page 17

FIG. 5. One-Mile-Diameter Variable-Focus Liquid-Surface Diffraction-limited Orbital Primary Mirror
(Conclude)
1. Solar ray impinging on 60-mile-diameter collector mirror;
2. Subliming-propellant microrocket for 1-mi.-dia. mirror attitude-control;
3. Extreme possible position of spline; spline is attached along its length to the skin of the 1-mile-
diameter bellows;
4. Accordion-pleats around circumference of bellows;
5. Spline (attached to bellows) in opposite extreme position;
6. Solar ray after reflection from solar-collecting mirror;
7. Envelope of final focused high-energy coherent beam;
8. Short-focus surface of 1-mile-diameter liquid metal pool;
9. Instantaneous surface of 1-mile-dia. liquid primary mirror;
10. Envelope of laser beam which illuminates primary mirror;
11. Structure of posterior of primary mirror;
12. Pivot bearing for spline;
13. Interior of figuring liquid metal mass, constrained by bellows;
14. Cylinder containing piston used for varying bellows shape;
15. Piston used for varying bellows shape;
16. Piston position for extreme long-focus of liquid mirror;
17. Piston position for extreme short-focus of liquid mirror;
18. Interior of reservoir for massive liquid;
19. Flexible conduit for massive liquid;
20. Flexible conduit position for extreme long-focus;
21. Plastic-foam boundary ring;
22. Toroidal surface of cast-plastic mirror boundary, fabricated in space;
23. Channel for plastic; liquid plastic is cast by surface tension forces, results in toroidal surface;
24. Aluminized mylar material of solar collector mirror;
25. Plastic-foam structural border of solar-collecting mirror;
26. Subliming-propellant microrocket for solar-collector attitude control;
27. Interior of bellows figuring-liquid mass for extreme short-focus configuration of liquid mirror;
28. Bottom surface of enclosure for 1-mile-diameter liquid metal mirror pool;
29. Membrane structure of bellows;
30. Envelope of laser beam which illuminates primary mirror;
31. Solar ray before reflection from 60-mile-diameter concentrating mirror;
32. Envelope of final focused high-energy coherent beam;
33. Solar ray after reflection from solar-concentrating mirror;
34. Long-focus position of liquid mirror surface (for interstellar-rocket laser-beamed supply of solar
energy continuously for acceleration to 1/4
th
speed of light).
Page 18







(AFTER PETRASH & OTTO)

LIQUID
CHARACTERIZED
BY:


0
o
CONTACT
ANGLE


45
o
CONTACT
ANGLE

90
o
CONTACT
ANGLE


135
o
CONTACT
ANGLE

180
o
CONTACT
ANGLE

CYLINDRICAL
TANK
(VAPOR)




(LIQUID)

(LIQUID)



(VAPOR)

ZERO-G

1-G













N = VERTICAL LOAD IN gs
= CONTACT ANGLE

N

FIG. 6. Liquid surface in Lowered Gravity


FIG. 7


Page 19






FIG. 8. Liquid Optic in Zero - Gravity


= R
3
/2


o
1
+ o
2



FIG. 9. Error Due To Finite Load (Begin)


Page 20




The total potential energy K of the system consists of the sum of surface energies and the effective (net)
central-force-field or contact-force potential energy, where
(1) | | | | ( )
} } }
A +

' + + ' + =
1 1 1
0
2 2
0
0
2 / 1
2
0
2 / 1
2
1 1 2
x x x
lv
xdx v z ng xdx u xdx z K t e o t
while thermodynamic equilibrium implies:
(2) ( )
}
=
1
0
2

x
xdx z u
V
t
|
,
where:
| = ratio of vapor volume to container volume
V = Volume of container
g
0
= sea-level acceleration of gravity = -980.665 cm/sec
2

e =
lv
ls sv
o
o o

A = (
liquid
-
vapor
),
C =
lv
vapor liquid
lv
o

o

=
A


liquid
= density of fluid
( g
0
= SEA LEVEL GRAVITY )


R
3



o
1



o
2



FIG. 9. Error Due To Finite Load (Conclude)


Page 21


vapor
= density of vapor above liquid
Above equations (1) and (2) define an isoperimetric problem in the calculus of variations with a mobile
upper limit. The total energy K is to be minimized and the resulting differential equation (the solution)
will itself be solved to provide a fundamental design formula, or expression. This expression will be critical
both in the analysis of systematic errors engendered by net residual acceleration (all sources combined),
and in the synthesis of diffraction-limited optical surface figures by designing masses (shapes, sizes and
positions) which will deviate the optical surfaces slightly by gravitational attraction.
Minimization of K can be facilitated by introduction of the Bond Number (dimensionless physico-
chemical constant characteristic of the system):
(3)
lv
R ng
B
o

2
0
0
A
= ,
where:
n = load factor = sea level gs of acceleration operating on system
R = radius of curvature of liquid-vapor interface.

12. LIS DIFFERENTIAL EQUATION
Applying standard techniques of the variational calculus, Li found the differential equation
(1) ,
q
,
q
q
,
q
q
0
2 1
2
1 B
d
d
d
d
d
d
=

(
(

|
|
.
|

\
|
+
/
,
where:
(2) ( )
(
(

+ =
0
2
0
1
B
R
z z
R
, ,
and
(3)
2
2
|
.
|

\
|
=
R
x
q .
Lis solution for ordinate (height) z(x) of the meniscus surface at a lateral distance x (abscissa) from the
vertex, was the infinite series,
(4) ( ) ) ( ...
2 6
1
3
20
12
3
1
2
4
2
1
2
2 ) 0 (
6
2
0 0
4
0
2
x f
R
x
B B
R
x
B
R
x
z z = + |
.
|

\
|
|
.
|

\
|
+ + + |
.
|

\
|
+ + |
.
|

\
|
= = .
This equation is the required solution to the characteristic (Euler) differential equation of the given
variational problem.
From Figure 8 and 9, we define
Page 22

(5)
( ) ( ) | | ( ) ( ) | | 0 0
0 0
1 0 1 0 B B
z x z z x z = o

,

, where:
z
0
(x
1
) = ordinate of the (spherical) liquid surface at x = x
1
when Bond No. B
0
= 0 n = 0 or zero
gravity; see Figs 8 and 9.
z
0
(0) = 0 = ordinate of the vertex (at x = 0) of the (spherical) liquid surface when Bond No. B
0
= 0
n = 0 or zero gravity.
( ) =
1
0
x z
B
ordinate of the (non-spherical) liquid surface at x = x
1
when B
0
0 n

0 or nonzero-
gravity.
( ) = 0
0
B
z ordinate of the (non-spherical) liquid surface at x = 0 when B
0
0 n

0 or non-zero-
gravity.
We also define:
R
0
= radius of curvature of unperturbed liquid surface,
x
1
= radius of the meniscus aperture,
= f/number = focal ratio = F/D,
F = focal length,
D = aperture,
g = ng
0
,

0
B
R = radius of curvature at the vertex of the (non-spherical) surface of revolution
obtained when n (and therefore B
0
) is finite.
Note that R
0
is defined as the radius of curvature of the circular cross section when B
0
= 0, and
0
B
R is
defined as the radius of curvature at this vertex when B
0
(which is proportional to the acceleration of the
system) is a very small quantity indeed. Hence, for the systems under consideration, which are
accelerated only by such tiny forces as gravity gradient, self-gravitation and solar wind, the difference
between R
0
and
0
B
R is an infinitesimal of yet higher order.
Neglecting this infinitesimal we may write
0
B
R = R
0
.
Substituting the latter (close) approximation in (5) we find
(6) ( )
(
(

+
|
|
.
|

\
|
= ...
4
0
1 0
2
4
2
1
R
x
a R o ,
where:
Page 23

(7) a
1
= 4 + B
0
,
Now the a
i
are functions of the dimensionless parameter B
0
and the ratio x/(2R
0
) is also dimensionless
since x and R
0
are measured in the same units. Hence the units of o are the units of R
0
.
Combining (6) and (7) and taking the deviation o positive we have from the first non-zero term of this
rapidly convergent series:
(8)
(
(

+
|
|
.
|

\
|
= ...
4
0
0 0
2 2
1
R
x
B R o .
Substituting for the Bond Number, B
0
, from (3) of the last section, reducing and neglecting higher-order
terms, this becomes:
(9)
0
4
1 0
5

2
1
R
x g n
lv
o

o
A
|
.
|

\
|
~ .
If the liquid meniscus surface is considered an optical surface (reflector or refractor) we may redefine the
parameters of o as follows:
R
3
= R
0
= radius of curvature of an optical mirror or lens,
F = R
3
/2 = focal length for paraxial rays striking an optic of curvature radius R
3
,
D = 2x
1
= aperture of optical system,
= f/no = focal ratio = F/D =
|
|
.
|

\
|
1
3
4
1
x
R
.
Substituting expression for x
1
derived above, (9) becomes:
(10)
( )
0
4
0
5
2 /
2
1
R
D g n
lv
o

o
A
|
.
|

\
|
~ .
Further focal ratio is:
(11) =
|
|
.
|

\
|
1
3
4
1
x
R
=
|
|
.
|

\
|
2 4
1
0
/ D
R
=
D
R
2
0
;
Hence, substituting (11) in (10) and substituting for
lv
vapor liquid
o

from (2) of the last section above,
(10) becomes:
(12) o

|
.
|

\
|
~
3
0
10
2
1 D
C ng .

Page 24

13. THE FUNDAMENTAL (MATHEMATICAL) EXPRESSION OF LIQUID SPACE OPTICS
We may define (12) of the section above as the fundamental expression of liquid space optics, equally
useful for analysis and synthesis.
From (12) in last section above, note that, as you would expect, the error o imposed by the net axial
acceleration, is inversely proportional to both liquid-vapor surface tension and f/no , where telescopes
with large f/nos already have relatively flat primaries. Hence they are going to be, if liquid, less
susceptible to net axial acceleration, which is felt merely as a flattening influence anyway.
Note also from (12) above, the error will be directly proportional to net axial acceleration, ng
0
, and not
surprisingly will also be proportional to the third power of the liquid space optical systems primary
diameter.
Distributing signs (removing parentheses) in Equation (5) in Section 12 and going back to Figure 7, note
that flattening at the circumference of liquid optic under a net downward acceleration, is reflected by
positive quantity ( ) ( )
1 1 0 1
0
x z x z
B
= o , whereas concomitant flattening at the vertex of the liquid optic
under the same net downward acceleration, is reflected by positive quantity, ( ) ( ) 0 0
0 2
0
z z
B
= o , such
that, finally, combining (summing):
(1) o = o
1
+ o
2

|
.
|

\
|
~
3
0
10
2
1 D
C ng ,
Equation (1) above is plotted with f/no as parameter in Fig. 10. Note the graphed decreasing error o with
larger f/nos. Similarly plot of Figure 11 shows o exponentially increasing with increased aperture D,
whereas plot of Figure 12 shows error o vs. axial load ng
0
with liquid-optic material as parameter.

14. CHARACTERISTICS OF SEHS-POWERED NONSELF-CONTAINED VS. CHINESE
ROCKETRY
Using solar or stellar energy, astronomical and laser-optical principles, it becomes practical by
powerbeam-from-orbit bootstrapping (and exponential self-construction) of ultimately vast optical
systems in space, to pinpoint-transport almost arbitrarily large solar/stellar-derived energy supplies at
lightspeed to a fixed or moving receiver virtually anywhere in a solar/stellar system or outside in nearby
extrasolar/stellar space. Conventional cost yardsticks meantime, derived from solid optics on the
terrestrial surface, become totally irrelevant. Such macro-optics in prospect rapidly become self-
supporting, then supply a vast and exponentially increasing surplus quantity of valuable, marketable,
(free) energy, as desired, to specified locations on a planet or in nearby interplanetary space for the
indefinite future.
Available energy and raw material resources of a star and associated planets are effectively limitless.
Proposed technology evidently therefore could result for example here in a literal earthly millennium.
Similarly shuttle service to all local planets easily should be effected by such technology at one-gravity
Page 25

acceleration/deceleration or for example average of fortnightly (two-weekly) roundtrip travel times to
Moon, Mars, Venus, Jupiter, etc.




Finally roundtrip interstellar flight employing first the energy of the local star then that of the approached
star, becomes first feasible then exponentially faster and easier as permanent, exponentially self-grown
stellar energy handling satellites are emplaced respectively in orbit both of the home and of the
target star. Relativistic interstellar-spaceship effects become marked as SEHS size (therefore energybeam
tightness range- and output) exponentially is increased. Thus roundtrip interstellar trips will become
increasingly faster (closer to lightspeed) for the travellers, but will concomitantly result in differential
(greater) aging of relatives/friends on the home planet (as predicted by Special Relativity).
DATA FOR LIQUID GALLIUM AT 86
o
F
(C = 0.0083 sec
2
/cm
3
)


FIGURE 10: Error vs. f/no. for several apertures at 10
-12
g load.

(
I
N

U
N
I
T
S

O
F

1
0
-
2

)

A
T

1
0
-
1
2

g



FIG. 10


Page 26






Design of particle-accelerator rocketmotors may draw on airborne applications as in particle-beam (Star
Wars) weaponry research. Grossly reducing the great weight of the laboratory particle-accelerator
apparatus should be straightforward, as there need be no scientific application/conditioning whatever of
the output beam.

15. THREE DAYS TO MARS BY MACROLASER-SUPPLIED 1 g FERRYBOAT
Mars distance from earth (Ref. 42) ranges from 34.5 10
6
miles to 235 10
6
mi. Therefore average Mars
distance is 84 10
6
miles.
Half of Mars average distance is 42 10
6
mi.
FIGURE 11: Error vs. axial load N for several liquid gallium mirrors


10
-11



10
-10



10
-9



10
-8



10
-7



10
1



10
0



10
-1



10
-2



10
-3



N = AXIAL LOAD (gs)


10
-11



10
-10



10
-9



10
-8



10
-7



R
3
= 300 IN.
D = 150 IN.

R
3
= 300 IN.
D = 75 IN.

R
3
= 200 IN.
D = 100 IN.



R
3
= 200 IN.
D = 50 IN.


R
3
= 100 IN.
D = 50 IN.

R
3
= 100 IN.
D = 25 IN.



(F/1)

(F/2)

(F/1)

(F/2)

(F/1)

(F/2)

Figure 11


Page 27







Therefore at an acceleration (constant) of one gravity, the time required to reach half the average
Martian distance is 1.174 10
5
seconds = 1.4 days.
Total time, therefore, to reach Mars at its average distance from earth, will be 2.8 days (at a one-gravity
acceleration for the trips first half, followed by a one-gravity deceleration for the other half).
Velocity at midcourse of this Martian voyage, will be 3.78 10
6
ft/sec = 2.58 10
6
mph = u.
Exhaust velocity, therefore, to earn best or lowest (single-stage to midcourse) ratio of initial mass
(includes expellant) to payload mass is also about
v = u = 3.78 10
6
ft/sec.
Specific impulse, therefore, of expellant needed is:
10
1



10
0



10
-1



10
-2



10
-13



10
-3



10
-12



10
-11



10
-10



10
-9



N = AXIAL LOAD (gs)


10
-13



10
-12



10
-11



10
-10



10
-9



SILICONE OIL,
TOLUENE,
MERCURY


PHENOL


GALLIUM


POTASSIUM


FIGURE 12: Error vs. axial load for 300 inch F/I optics of various liquids


Figure 12


Page 28

(Sp. Imp.)
Mars Ferryboat Expellant
=
2
6
ft/sec 32.2
ft/sec 10 3.78
= 117,400 sec.
This is perhaps a reasonable specific impulse for an ion rocket, as Mallove & Matloff note (Ref. 22, op.
cit.), ion rockets at a theoretically very best might deliver ultimately 400,000 sec.
Next, let (final leg, deceleration) payload mass for the Mars Ferryboat be 1,400,000 lb (arbitrary), while
combined mass of ion rocket engine and associated local (SEHS beam) collector is also 1,400,000 lb (also
arbitrary).
Initial (earth take-off) cocoon (2
nd
Stage of sorts) mass is 1,400,000 lb for the payload, plus another
1,400,000 lb for the combination of rocketmotor and associated local collector mirror, plus 24,220,000 lb
for the expellant = 27,020,000 lb. total. This entire combined mass is of course the original, launch-from-
earth payload, or cocoon.
Let initial ion motor plus associated local SEHS beam secondary collector mass, to accelerate the
cocoon, also equal 27,020,000 lb. Then (Refs 32, 33) total rocket initial mass (at earth take-off) will be
(19.3) 2.7 10
7
lb = 5.21 10
8
lb.
Also note (Ref. 32, op. cit., Section 21-2) that approximately
v ot ~ , under these circumstances, where:
o
p
M
P
= = specific power,
where:
P = electric propulsion power output
M
p
= mass of the thrust-producing system.
Acceleration (constant at 1 g) of the 5.21 10
8
lb rocketship from earth out to 42 10
6
miles, at an
exhaust velocity about equal to midcourse velocity, requires that:
u = v = 3.78 10
6
ft/sec at midcourse.
Also time duration of acceleration (or deceleration) per leg is:
t = 1.174 10
5
sec = 1.4 days.
Then, to calculate SEHS total beampower needed to follow the Mars-going rocket continuously (and
supply all power both for acceleration and deceleration):
Exhaust Velocity, v = t
p
M
P
,
where:
v = 3.8 10
6
ft/sec
M
p
= 2.702 10
7
lb
t = 1.174 10
5
seconds.
Page 29

Thence:
P = 4.506 10
12
kW.
Next note from Section 23 below, that the total permanent (solar-orbiting) MACROLASER output power
(nominally for interstellar work) will be: P = 1.9 10
14
kW, such that the proportion of this power needed
for Mars ferryboat propulsion will be only about 4%.
Finally passenger density on the 1,400,000 lb Mars ferryboat needs to be determined, to estimate
number of passengers.
Presume that ten times the empty-wgt. density of the Boeing 747, for example, will be needed,
considering extra safety and survival gear that must be included for a Mars (3-day) voyage.
Boeing 747 empty-wgt. density is (max.) 352,711 lb empty weight per 500 passengers = 705 lb/passenger
(Ref. 39).
Mars ferryboat density if ten times greater, would yield 7,050 lb empty weight per passenger, or a limiting
number of passengers of 200 passengers per trans-Martian 3-day ferryboat.

16. COLONIZING MARS: CELESTIAL ENGINEERING TO CREATE BREATHABLE O
2

First, note that, If all the permafrost under the Martian surface were melted and the topography
smoothed out, an ocean several hundred meters deep (about 1000 ft deep?-JHB) would be created,
covering the whole planet (Ref. 40). Many independent sources in theory agree (Ref. 41).
Lets leave half the frost (for conversion to ocean water later on), and concentrate on converting the
oxygen from the other half to free (breathable) oxygen for air (well have to get the nitrogen elsewhere
from another planet or its satellite?)
Mars radius is about 3390 km (Ref. 42) or 2106.5 miles (or about half of earths radius, which is 4000
miles).
Then half of the Mars (equivalent) H
2
O volume would be 7.8 10
17
ft
3
.
In the electrolysis of water (Ref. 43), 96,500 coulomb will deposit one oxygen chemical equivalent (Ref.
43, op. cit.) =
2
gm 16
= 8 gm.
The 1640-mile-diameter, permanent MACROLASER, orbiting the sun at th A.U. (from Section 23
below, as designed for propulsion), will deliver a laser output beam of 1.19 10
14
kW from a 27-mi.-dia.
diffraction-limited primary mirror. Presume this beam can be applied (its diffused focus) on Mars to an
electrolysis cell delivering a current of 11.9 10
16
coulombs/sec at one volt.
Time, then, to release all the oxygen on Mars from a planet-wide ocean 500 ft deep (by electrolysis) will
be 6.8 years.
Total weight of air on earth (Ref. 43, op. cit.) is 6 10
15
tons, yielding at 23% oxygen by weight, about
1.317 10
15
tons of O
2
above earth.
Page 30

Total weight of released oxygen on Mars, then, will be 5.27 10
18
lb, whereas on earth it is fixed at
about 2.76 10
18
lb.
Thus is 6.8 years of electrolysis, since Mars surface area is only one-quarter that of earth, while about
twice as much free oxygen would have been released above Mars as exists above earth, we would have
created eight times the oxygen per unit topographical area above Mars as earth.
Consequently to create O
2
per unit area above Mars equal to that above earth, only 6.8 yrs./8 ~ 10
months of electrolysis would be needed by the 1640-mi.-dia. permanent MACROLASER circling the sun
in a th A.U. orbit.
Conveniently then, about 15/16ths of the original Mars permafrost mass presumed originally equivalent
to water 1000 ft deep would be left for the purpose of manufacturing oceans on Mars.

17. CELESTIAL ENGINEERING: CREATING OCEANS ON MARS BY MELTING PERMAFROST
Water heat of fusion is 144 Btu/lb, whereas 1 Btu = 0.2931 Watthr.
If one-sixteenth of Mars permafrost bed (total presumed equivalent to a planet-wide ocean 1000 ft
deep) is converted to breathable oxygen (and hydrogen see last section), then there would remain
1.4625 10
18
ft
3
of (equivalent) H
2
O on Mars (frozen).
Fusion of all this ice on Mars (presumably initially at 0
o
C) will require 3.851 10
18
kWhr of energy.
Now the 1640-mi. dia. permanent solar MACROLASER orbiting the sun at th A.U. (from Section 23
below, as designed for interstellar propulsion), will deliver (@1% efficiency overall, at its focus),
1.19 10
14
kW.
Total time, then, needed to hold this MACROLASER beam on Mars to melt 15/16ths of a bed of
permafrost equal to a depth of 1000 ft of water (ice) planet-wide, would be (not accounting for
interposition of mantle, etc.)
(MELT-TIME)
Mars Remaining Permafrost
~ 4 years
Macrolaser melting of Mars permafrost might be best accomplished by boring a network of sinkholes
(possibly for this purpose the superhot focus of the undiffused macrolaser beam). Then one might
systematically shine the (diffused) beam on large areas near sinkholes, to melt and drain these areas
(most draining below ground) into the holes. Returning the (diffused this time) laserbeam to train on
respective sinkholes (in a repetitive pattern), would result in waters being directly evaporated from
each hole by the laser heat, such that water vapor should rise and mix itself into the incipient Martian
atmosphere. Precipitation from such clearly enormous quantity of water vapor, should lead to the
development of lakes and oceans inside existing Martian declivities, over generally the entire surface of
the planet (i.e., those areas of sufficiently low altitude)

Page 31

18. FIRST STELLAR FLYBY PROBES (FIGS 13, 14)
See (IAF Gordon & Breach, 67, NYC Ref. 33, op. cit.) The Alpha Centauri Probe, being this authors
instrumented or robotic starship to flyby our nearest stellar neighbor in about 17 years at one-quarter the
speed of light (Figs 13 and 14) proposal based on a 60-mile-diameter-overall Solar Energy Handling
Satellite (considered very impressively large in those days).
Alpha Centauri probe would have been a spaceship (picture-taking probe) driven by (ion or particle-
accelerator) rocketmotor supplied by the moving focus of a sunpumped, sun-orbiting, remote laser
system featuring a 60-mile-diameter aluminized mylar solar-collecting mirror (Fig. 4), assembled
(bootstrapped) in LEO, self-propelled to sun orbit.
The Probes 1-2 meter-diameter-objective (liquid) mirror camera, would itself have been an expandable,
liquid-optic unit, as the enormous acceleration level maximum of 780 gs was proposed to get the Probe
up to speed ( c), before the supply-beam spread appreciably (and of course no conventional optics
would survive these forces).
It was proposed that the supply macrolaser be placed in a solar orbit mainly to reduce the slewing or
pointing requirements.
The Probe would have weighed 14,000 lb; its acceleration period would have been 24 hours, during which
time it would have been accelerated 200 million miles into deep space. The Probe would have
continuously monitored its position in the Probe plane normal to the supply base, and used onboard
microrockets to maintain itself square in the center.
Alpha Centauri Probes functions would have been entirely under control of its computers during
approach to the Alpha Centauri 3-star system: terminal speed of 45,000 mi/sec would require precision
photography. Poses would have been transmitted to earth by the probes expandable microwave
transceiver antenna system.
The particle-accelerator probe rockets performance is governed by the well-known rocket equation (Ref.
32, op. cit.)
|
|
|
.
|

\
|

=
1
2
1
2
0
v
u
v
u
L
e
v
e
M
M
ot
,
where,
M
0
= total original rest-mass of rocketship and expellant
M
L
= payload mass, in lb.
u = desired spacecraft terminal velocity, in km/sec.
o = specific power ratio
p
M
P
= , where
P = power available for thrust, in kW,
M
p
= mass of thrust-producing system onboard probe, in lb.
Page 32

t = desired acceleration time (or boost) period, in sec.
v = expellant exhaust velocity, km/sec
Product of specific power, o, and acceleration time, t, is approximately proportional with nearly
equivalent proportionality factors- to both u
2
and v
2
for rockets with minimum
L
M
M
0
.
Then for Alpha Centauri probe,
o = 2.52 10
7
kW/lb,
t = 24 hr.
u = v = c = ot =7 10
4
km/sec.
Total mass of the (unconsumed) thrust producing system, is taken (arbitrarily) at 200 lb. Expellant (for
acceleration by particle-accelerator rocketmotor) mass is nominally in the shape of a load-bearing, frozen,
concave-meniscus cake, tapering in cross-section out to the limb (Figs 13, 14).


Then terminal mass M
e
= 14,200 lb, payload mass M
L
= 14,000 lb, total initial mass M
0
= (19.3)M
L
=
270,000 lb, and expellant mass = M
f
= 255,800 lb.
Principle of Alpha Centauri Probe was to transcend Chinese Rocketry by supplying all energy to our
interstellar rocket via macrolaserbeam dispatched steadily (CW) from afar (from orbit of earth or sun).
FIG. 13. INTERSTELLAR SHIP IN ACCELERATION PHASE


Page 33

The energy would be provided by the sun itself, solar energy would have been used to pump the laser,
furnished by a very large collector mirror.





19. FIRST TWO-WAY INTERSTELLAR MANNED EXPEDITION
Using the principles introduced above, we may identify the following possible features of the first
manned round-trip interstellar expedition:
The target will be one of the two sun-like stars of the Alpha Centauri Group (nearest stars to the Solar
System), which are about 4.3 light-years distant.

20. SEED SEHS WEIGHT & SIZE FOR INTERPLANETARY/INTERSTELLAR USE
A seed solar energy handling spaceship (SEHS) package, will transfer itself into synchronous (22,240-
mi.-high) earth orbit after it is first lofted as a 200,000-lb payload into LEO by a common chemical
booster. Total seed weight of 200,000 lb comprises all (proportional) elements such that collector
mirror will be 5,290 ft.-diameter and precision (liquid) optical primary mirror will be 88 ft. diameter (Fig.
4).
FIG. 14.
Electromagnetic Non-Self-Contained
Rocket Motor
(1) Payload (stoppable or unstoppable);
(2) High-temperature ionizable (ablatable)
disc;
(3) Insulator Spike-Bed to fix separation
between disc and electrode mesh;
(4) Electrode mesh;
(5) Envelope of exhaust plume;
(6) Direction of impinging laser beam from
distant orbital laser beampower source;
(7) Direction of rocket exhaust.
5
4
1
3
2
7
6
7
Page 34


1
5


1
4


1
1


1
3


1
2


1


4


3


2


9


1
0


1
7


8


1
6


7


6


5


F
I
G
.

1
5
.

F
A
B
R
I
C
A
T
I
O
N

O
F

M
A
C
R
O
-
O
P
T
I
C
S

I
N

S
P
A
C
E

(
B
E
G
I
N
)

Page 35

FIG. 15. FABRICATION OF MACROOPTICS IN SPACE (CONCLUDE)
(1) Subliming-propellant microrocket for attitude control; this rocket is embedded in a plastic-foam
section of mirror or lens- boundary;
(2) Astronaut engaged in extending diameter of macro-optic;
(3) Plastic unit boundary section;
(4) Channel guide for spool carrying plastic sheet for circumferential optic augmentation;
(5) Escape rocket for Apollo Command module;
(6) Apollo Command module used for initial steps in fabrication of Gigawatt Radiative Optical
Macroelectronic (or interstellar power-beaming) system;
(7) S-IV-B stage of jettisoned Apollo ferry vehicle;
(8) Beam of macrolaser used to bootstrap augmentation of latter, via SCT (Spacelink Civilian
Transport) ferry vehicle;
(9) SCT ascending via near-microwave (from free electron laser) energy, ferrying load of building
material to astronauts;
(10) Plasma exhaust of SCT;
(11) Releasable joint between two boundary-unit sections;
(12) Body of giant solar-collecting mirror;
(13) Plastic-foam unit boundary section;
(14) Channel-follower, integral with spool;
(15) Old circumference of macro-optic;
(16) Pod carrying spool wound with sheet material for construction;
(17) Unrolled sheet material for macro-optic construction.

21. SEED EXPONENTIAL GROWTH PERIOD FOR INTERSTELLAR APPLICATION
Use the system of the last paragraph to exponentially bootstrap up to low earth orbital altitude
construction materials supplied from earth, moon or other planet or satellite (whichever is most
convenient). Seed satellite will be augmented by astronauts (Fig. 15) at the exponential rate of 1/80
th

per day, requiring thereby 3.2 years to grow (assemble itself) into a 1640-mile-diameter, 53.5 10
10
-lb-
gwt., completed permanent SEHS unit adequate for launching (stoppable) 140,000-lb payloads to
Alpha Centauri. This permanent SEHS, to quadruple power, must first transfer itself to a
th
A.U. orbit of
the sun, to keep total mass down to 1/16
th
and overall diameter down to
th
the equivalent-output unit in
GEO. Its primary (liquid) central mirror will be 1/60
th
of 1640 miles = 27-mi.dia. Transfer will be effected
by attached (dismountable) LREMs (Laserpowered Remote Electricrocket Motors) fed from the central
macrolaser pumped by the 1640-mi.dia. associated solar-collector mirror.
Page 36

22. ADVANCE STUDY OF THE TARGET STARS VICINITY
Astronomical study of the Alpha Centauri System, will be accomplished next using the 27-mi.di.
(diffraction-ltd.) optical primary of the sun-orbiting solar energy handling satellite as an astronomical
telescope. This mirror can resolve some 320 miles at Alpha Centauri distance. Main purpose will be to
identify raw materials (by photograph and spectrograph) for construction of an A.C.-orbiting SEHS as
accelerator for the return spaceship (operating also at c/4, which is nominal speed both for stellar
approach and earth-return).

23. TOTAL POWER DELIVERED BY THE SUN-ORBITING PERMANENT SEHS
Power delivered by the 1640-mi.-dia.-collector permanent sun-orbital accelerator in
th
A.U. solar orbit,
will be 1.19 10
14
kW (Compare to world energy demand predicted for 1990 by Zarem-Erway -Ref. 44- of
7.35 10
11
kW, which is about half a percent of the former interstellar propulsion- requirement). Note
that given power delivered by the 1640-mi.-dia. sun-orbiting system, purportedly accounts for all losses
and is estimated such as to give 1% overall efficiency (in the entire propulsion process) at the associated
rocketmotor output. Dr. Bertrand Oliver of course is amply exonerated: MACROLASER power is 200 times
total earth consumption (about), just to lob and stop astronauts and assembleable packages for a return-
to-earth spaceship (out to Alpha Centauri) in about 700,000 launches! This doesnt account for all the
energy to start & stop astronauts on the return. But since stars provide all the power, who cares?

24. RATIO OF GWT. OF ACCELERATOR PKG. TO GWT. OF ASSOCIATED PAYLOAD
Mass of each individual stoppable unmanned (freight) or manned (passenger) payload dispatched to
Alpha Centauri, is set arbitrarily at 140,000 lb. The 1640-mile-diameter permanent accelerator orbiting
the sun, will launch a succession of (Fig. 16) stoppable 140,000-lb payloads to Alpha Centauri, each at a
cruise velocity of c/4 (or rocket specific impulse of 7,500,000 seconds respectively, where terminal
velocity approximately equals exhaust velocity). Ratio of gross weight of the sun-orbiting permanent
accelerator package, to gross weight of each dispatched flyby decelerator + payload package mass, is
about 2,000-to-1. Ratio of each flyby decelerator package mass itself to its own associated stoppable
payload mass, is also 2,000-to-1.

25. INTERSTELLAR SEH SPACESHIP ASSEMBLY EN ROUTE BY ROBOTS (AUTOMATION)
Each individual stoppable payloads associated (flyby) decelerator (collector-and-precision liquid optics:
laser/pump/primary/secondary/focus-control), is assembled by robots (by automation) in zero-g
(unpowered trajectory, i.e., while coasting) en route to Alpha Centauri at c/4.

Page 37











26. ALPHA-CENTAURI-CIRCLING COCOONED LAUNCH PACKAGE FOR ASTRONAUT
RETURN
No flyby decelerator system need be included in the astronaut-return cocoon package dispatched
from Alpha Centauri, since the original, sun-orbiting (1640-mile-diameter) accelerator, may now be
used as an (astronaut-return) decelerator (i.e., by supplying solar-macrolaser energy to drive the particle-
accelerator retrorocket, to slow the astronauts return-spaceship from c/4 to earth-orbital velocity). Thus
A.C.-orbiting, permanent accelerator diameter and therefore mass, neednt be nearly as great as that of
the 1640-mi.-dia. sun-orbiting one.
Additionally, included in the Launch-from-Alpha Centauri (L.A.C.) rocket package, will be (only):
Target star (e.g., Alpha Centauri A);
(2) ,(3) Planets of approached star;
(4) Primary mirror of flyby braking system;
(5) Diverged laser beam illuminating primary mirror;
(6) laser/diverging lens assembly;

1
2
17
4
6
8
5
7
9
10
11
12
13
14
3
15
5
16
5
1
FIG. 16. Stoppable Ship in Braking Approach to Target Star:
(7) focused stellar
energy;
(8) Collector mirror;
(9) Perforation in
collector mirror;
(10) Interplanetary space
of target star;
(11) Laser beam focused
by primary mirror;
(12) Braking rocket
exhaust;
(13) Braking rocket;
(14) 140,000-lb
stoppable payload;
(15) ,(16) Stopped
Payloads, already
orbiting target star;
(17) Direction of motion
of flyby braking
system.

(1)
Page 38

(I) a cocoon, where the cocoon consists just of
(1) the 140,000-lb (manned) payload, plus
(2) the payload-stopping rocketmotors local (secondary) collector-mirror (integral with
the payload), plus
(3) the payload-stopping (particle-accelerator) rocketmotor itself (also integral with the
payload), plus
(4) a total weight of payload-stopping expellant equal to 19.3 times the sum of items
(1), (2) and (3), where one notes that the cocoon is able to exclude the vast
deceleration primary flyby solar-collecting mirror normally required;
(II) the cocoon-accelerating rocketmotors local (or secondary) collector-mirror;
(III) the cocoon-accelerating (particle-accelerator) rocketmotor itself;
(IV) a total weight of expellant equal to 19.3 times the sum of items (I), (II), and (III) above (to
launch the cocoon at c/4 toward the Solar System).

27. MINIMUM SIZE OF LAUNCH-FROM ALPHA CENTAURI (L.A.C.) ROCKET PACKAGE
ENCLOSING EARTH-ASTRONAUT-RETURN COCOON (STOPPABLE WITH SUN-
ORBITING SEHS)
Weight of the L.A.C. rocket package (from the last paragraph above), may be some 52 10
6
lb. (only).
Then by (rocket-formula) proportions above, primary collector diameter of L.A.C. earth-return
accelerator system to accelerate cocoon to c/4, will be only some 680 miles overall (at 1% efficiency, a
2000-to-1 mass ratio, and presupposing a sun-equivalent Alpha Centauri star).
Mass, then, of the 680-mile-diameter-collector, A.C.-orbiting permanent accelerator system (or SEHS)
to launch to earth a 52 10
6
-lb (takeoff mass) spaceship enclosing a cocooned (manned-payload-
stopping) package (comprised of payload + earth-approach secondary collector mirror + earth-approach
deceleration rocketmotor + expellant), will be (only) some 93 billion pounds.

28. TOTAL QUANTITY OF STOPPABLE PAYLOADS TO BE SENT TO A.C. IF ALL A.C.-
CIRCLING SEHS ACCELERATOR MATERIAL IS TO BE SENT FROM THE SOLAR
SYSTEM
Number of stoppable payloads at 140,000 lb each, required to be sent to Alpha Centauri from the Solar
System for the astronauts to assemble (on the spot) into a 93 billion pound (Centauri-circling) earth-
return permanent accelerator, would be 660,000 loads.


PLUS
PLUS
PLUS
Page 39


29. POSSIBLE MINIMUM QUANTITY TOTAL STOPPABLE A.C.-GOING TOOL-&-
SUPPLIES PAYLOADS IF EARTH-RETURN SEHS IS MANUFACTURED (NOT,
ASSEMBLED ONLY) IN ALPHA CENTAURI ORBIT
Using local (A.C.) raw materials, and sending astronauts with tools, maps, essential supplies and
assemblies, to manufacture their own return accelerator (rather than merely assemble it by first
collecting 660,000 previously stopped payloads orbiting an A.C. sun), might require that only some 300
loads (pure guess) at 140,000 lb. each, be sent to A.C.
Progressively more refined information would be gathered and processed by the astronauts in (nearly 17
years of) real-time as they approached Alpha Centauri, by the expedient of reversing their diffraction-
limited (self-assembled) deceleration primary-mirror during their near-17-year voyage, and using it for an
astronomical telescope to study the A.C. vicinity. Thus, a two-way flow of information with earth libraries
& computing facilities could be maintained for most of the voyage, to constantly update and aid
astronauts in manufacturing planning.
Astronauts would spend approximately 17.2 years in transit to Alpha Centauri, 3% of that time in
acceleration-deceleration (artificial) 1 g, the balance in centrifugal-rotation (artificial) 1 g.

30. GALLIUM COST AND EXPECTED COST REDUCTION
The permanent accelerator astronomical primary mirror orbiting the sun (and all other mirrors) would
be plated with a liquid-gallium thickness of 0.003-inch (plated on liquid-plastic). If one mile in diameter
and using gallium valued at, say, $400 per ounce, 336 tons of gallium costing $4.3 billion (1994 FRN)
would be required. Creation of new wealth-money (vs. present debt-money) and grossly improved metal-
extraction technology (from earth, moon, other planets and their moons, asteroids, etc.) respectively by
orbital solar macrolasers, should succeed in driving gallium price sufficiently low (if we still need to be
concerned about such things!) Thus it appears predictable sufficient gallium even for the 27-mile-
diameter primary- should be forthcoming on acceptable terms.
c/4 cruise speed of interstellar rockets gives relativistic mass increase of 3%. With SEHS accelerators
orbiting both our sun and an Alpha Centauri sun, improvements in cruise speed should come rapidly,
comparable to a game of progressive interstellar hardball. It should ultimately be possible to approach
lightspeed for this one star-to-star span, while other stars evidently could be added, exponentially as-we-
go, to available, near-lightspeed, star-to-star spans (at least in our corner of the galaxy).
MACROLASERS for scientific research (not just astronomy, propulsion and space-travel) imply of course a
virtual explosion in scientific knowledge, no doubt such as to rapidly render the interstellar
propulsion/exploration system expanded on here (mostly from this authors earlier publications) totally
obsolete.

Page 40

31. RULES, ARBITRARY AND NOT
Rocket exhaust (expellant) velocity, must be set at approximately desired spacecraft terminal velocity,
to earn best (lowest) ratio of initial spacecraft mass M
0
to payload mass M
L
.
No A.C.-going-or-return spaceship acceleration or deceleration would or would need to significantly
exceed 1 g at any time.
Each solar/stellar collector would be fabricated as a 0.0007-inch-thick, aluminized-mylar, closed, inflated,
spherical segment of one base, aluminized on the inside concave surface with overall average density 2.0.
Stellar collector efficiency = .................................................................................................................... 0.9.
(Starpumped, liquid-end-mirror) laser efficiency = ................................................................................ 0.1.
Primary and Secondary Mirror Efficiency = ........................................................................................... 0.9.
Laserpowered Remote Electricrocket Motor (LREM) secondary (local) collector-disc efficiency = .. 0.9.
Rocketmotor thrust-producing efficiency = ........................................................................................... 0.2.
Overall (MACROLASER-energy-supplied) nonself-contained propulsion process efficiency is ... about 1%.
Blastoff-to-Cutoff, and Retrorocket-to-Halt stages respectively require 88.5 days = ................. 0.24 yr.
Distances Blastoff-to-Cutoff and Retrorocket-to-Halt respectively are ...................... 0.18 trillion miles.
In a later study, power levels for acceleration to and deceleration from c/4, must be increased to account
for redshift of supply source radiation toward redder (less energetic, longer wavelength) photons.

REFERENCES
1. Erb, R. Bryan, Power from Space When?, Canadian Space Agency, in Proceedings of 43
rd
IAF
Congress, Paper No. IAF-92-0595, 1992.
2. ONeill, Gerard K., The High Frontier Human Colonies in Space, Space Studies Institute Press,
Princeton, NJ, 1989.
3. Soderberg, Gregory K., Ed., Money Talks, Vol. II, No. 3, The Coalition to Reform Money, 7007 Lynmar
Lane, Edina, MN 55435, 1994.
4. Erickson, Matt, Liberty and Justice for Some, Desktop. Pub., available author, FAX 360/687-9027,
1994.
5. Marsh, Phil, The Compleat Patriot, available patriotic bookstores, Copyright 1986 by Phil Marsh.
6. Li, Ta, Hydrostatics in Various Gravitational Fields, General Dynamics Astronautical Division, Space
Physics Group, Applied Research Report, San Diego, CA; 1960.
7. Benedikt, E.T., Epihydrostatics of a Liquid in a Rectangular Tank With Vertical Walls, Northrop Norair
Div., Tech Report No. ASL_TM_60-38, Nov. 1960.
Page 41

8. Bloomer, J.H., The 300-Inch Diffraction-Limited Orbiting Eye, in AAS Space Electronics Symposium,
American Astronautical Society Science & Technology Series, Western Periodicals Co., North
Hollywood, CA, Vol. 6, 1965.
9. Bloomer, J.H., Foundations of Liquid Space Optics for Astronomy, Solar Power Satellites and
Interplanetary Shuttles, Invited Review for SPACE POWER, Vol. 13, Nos. 3&4, 1994.
10. Toussaint, M., Energy Transmission In Space; An Enabler Technology, SPS 91 Power from Space
Proceedings, Paris/Gif-Sur-Yvette, France, 27-30 Aug. 1991.
11. Military Secrecy Order, implemented June 15, 1965 by USAF on Space Telescope subject-matter of
patent application by J.H. Bloomer, inventor, under amended Serial Number 352,690. Filed Mar. 17,
1964.
12. Forbes, F.W., Expandable Structures, Space/Aeronautics, Pg. 62 et seq., Dec. 1964.
13. Forbes, F.W., Expandable Structures for Aerospace Application, American Rocket Society 17
th

Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, CA., Nov. 13-18, 1962.
14. Osgood, Carl C., Foamed-In-Place Structures for Space Vehicles and Stations, RCA Astro-Electronics
Products Division, Princeton, NJ.
15. Echo II Satelloon: Worlds Largest Spacecraft, G.T. Schjeldahl Co., Information Folder, Northfield,
Minnesota 1965.
16. Bloomer, J.H., Space Optics for Interplanetary and Interstellar Propulsion, accepted for 18
th

International Astronautical Federation Congress (Advanced Propulsion Systems); unpublished 1967.
17. Bloomer, J.H., Liquid Space Optics, J. Society of Photo-optical Instrumentation Engineers, Jan. 1966.
18. Protz, Rudolf, Active Optics for High Power Lasers, Messerschmitt-Boelkow-Blohm GmbH,
Dynamics Division, P.O. Box 80 11 49, D-8000 Mnchen 80, Germany, in SPIE Vol. 1024, Beam
Diagnostics and Beam Handling Systems, 1988.
19. Lockwood, R.M. & Lockwood, E.M., BLASTWAVE Proprietary Valveless Pulsejet System Infopak,
Lockwood & Associates, 516 Adams Street, Cottage Grove, OR, 1994.
20. Townes, C.H. & Schwartz, R.N., Interstellar and Interplanetary Communication by Optical Masers,
in Interstellar Communication, ed. by A.G.W. Cameron, W.A. Benjamin, Inc., 1963.
21. Bloomer, J.H., Conversion of Solar Energy VIA New Aerospace Technology, Intersociety Energy
Conversion Engineering Conference, Aug. 7-11, 1994, Monterey, CA; Proceedings pub. by AIAA 1994.
22. Mallove, Eugene & Matloff, Gregory, The Starflight Handbook, John Wiley & Sons; 1989.
23. von Hoerner, Sebastian, The General Limits of Space Travel, in Interstellar Communication, ed. by
A.G.W. Cameron, W.A. Benjamin Publisher; 1963.
24. Purcell, Edward, Radioastronomy and Communication Through Space, in Interstellar
Communication, ed. by A.G.W. Cameron, W.A. Benjamin Publisher; 1963.
Page 42

25. Marx, G., Interstellar Vehicle Propelled by Terrestrial Laser Beam, Nature, July 2, 1966.
26. Dyson, Freeman J., Interstellar Transport, Physics Today; 1968.
27. Norem, Philip C., Interstellar Travel, A Round Trip Propulsion System with Relativistic Velocity
Capabilities, American Astronautical Society, 15
th
Annual Meet, Denver, Colorado, June 1969.
28. Forward, Robert L., A Program for Interstellar Exploration, Journal of the British Interplanetary
Society, Vol. 29, pp. 611-632, 1976.
29. Jackson, A.A. & Whitmore, D.P., Laser Powered Interstellar rocket, Journal British Interplanetary
Society, Vol. 31, pgs. 335-337, 1978.
30. Weiss, R.F.; Pirri, A.N.; & Kemp, N.H., Laser Propulsion, American Institute of Aeronautics &
Astronautics, March 1979.
31. Oliver, B.M., A Review of Interstellar Rocketry Fundamentals, Proceedings, 38
th
IAF Congress,
Brighton, October 1987, in Journal British Interplanetary Society, Vol. 43, pp. 259-264.
32. Koelle, H.H., Handbook of Astronautical Engineering, 1
st
ed., McGraw-Hill, 1961.
33. Bloomer, J.H., The Alpha Centauri Probe, Proceedings of 17
th
International Astronautical Federation
Congress (Propulsion and Re-Entry); 1966, published by Gordon & Breach, NYC, 1967.
34. Condon, E.U. & Odishaw, Hugh, eds., Handbook of Physics, Chapter 9, Acceleration of Charged
Particles to High Energies, McGraw-Hill, 1958.
35. Meyers, R.A., Ed., Particle Accelerators in Encyclopedia of Physical Science & Technology, Academic
Press, Inc. 1987.
36. Neal, R.B., General Editor, The Stanford Two-Mile Linear Accelerator, W.A. Benjamin, Inc., 1968.
37. Bloomer, J.H., Liquid Space Optical Theory of Manned Starflight with Earthly Applications, in 23
rd

International Electric Propulsion Conference Proceedings, Seattle, WA, Sept. 1993.
38. Bloomer, J.H., Earthly Millennium Energy and Interstellar Shuttle Propulsion Potentials of Liquid
Space Optics, Proc. of 28
th
IECEC of the AIAA, ACS, IEEE, ASME, ANS, AIChE and SAE, Atlanta, GA:
1993.
39. 1974 International Specification Tables, Aviation Week & Space Technology, McGraw-Hill, 1963.
40. Zubrin, Robert M., The significance of the Martian Frontier, Ad Astra, Sept./Oct. 1994.
41. Carr, Michael H., The Surface of Mars, Yale University, QB641.C363, 1981.
42. Kopal, Zdenek, The Realm of the Terrestrial Planets, John Wiley & Sons, 1979.
43. Weber, R.L., White, M.W. & Manning, K.V., College Physics, McGraw-Hill, 1952.
44. Zarem, A.M. & Erdway, D.D., Eds., Introduction to the Utilization of Solar Energy, McGraw-Hill, 1963.