What Is An EM Drive?

Welcome back!  I thought I'd start the week off with a little science news.

While it might seem like space exploration has been at a standstill, I mean, we haven't gone back to the moon, and they keep talking about sending a man to Mars but yet we still haven't, there are a few areas of study that are trying to develop new ways of getting us out there the most efficient way possible.  One of the these areas that NASA is working hard on is propulsion.  Why propulsion?  Because most of the weight that needs to be accounted for when sending a rocket into space, and then for it to travel to the stars is fuel.  If we could eliminate the amount of, or even the need for fuel, this would make space travel all the more obtainable.  The latter, a fuel-free engine, seems to be making grounds in the research department.

It's called an EM Drive, and how it works is it bounces microwaves in an enclosed device to create thrust.  It's been tested on a small scale when NASA Eagleworks tested a model in a vacuum and it created thrust without the need for fuel.  Could this work on a larger scale in the vacuum of space?  That's what they are trying to find out.  If they can, then after launching a space craft into space, they could hook up the EM Drive and go.  No refueling would be necessary.  As for speed?  They are estimating that it could get astronauts to Mars in about six weeks.

It should be noted that this is still in the beginning stages of research and isn't definitive proof that it will work, but it is a step in the right direction.  You can learn more of the EM Drive in the video below: