An early application of practical room temperature superconductors would be to enable 2 month trips to Mars.
Paihau—Robinson, an industry leader in high-temperature superconducting (HTS) magnet development, is undertaking a five-year research programme into the application of its proprietary magnet technology to applied-field magneto plasma dynamic (AF-MPD) thrusters—a type of electric space thruster. Applied-field magneto plasma dynamic technology has been worked on for over 60 years and has been held back by magnets that are too weak and heavy.
If the South Korea practical room temperature superconductor pans out, then electric propulsion systems will go from a fraction of a newton of thrust up to hundreds of newtons. They will still be better than chemical engine fuel efficiency by ten times or more.
You would be able to run the engines for ten times longer and build up more speed. This would mean 1-2 months trips to Mars.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
Known for identifying cutting edge technologies, he is currently a Co-Founder of a startup and fundraiser for high potential early-stage companies. He is the Head of Research for Allocations for deep technology investments and an Angel Investor at Space Angels.
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