[jerf]

I don't see this frequently talked about, but this is one of the big reasons to hope that one of the alternative (non-ITER) fusion proposals succeed, because most or all of them are much smaller than a tokamak, and easy to launch into space, at which point they could power an ion drive for a long time. This is true even after ITER succeeds brilliantly and solves all our energy problems.

Ha ha, I told a funny!

A working fusion device of almost any kind would open up the solar system, without the dangers of lofting fission reactors. (Also, they get better energy density, and while fission would probably cut the mustard, in space you'll take every bit of energy density you can.)

[IgorCarron]

For a fusion device to work you need energy in first. In other words, you need a fission device first.

Igor.

[jerf]

I'm pretty sure that's "common wisdom" from the ITER project, not a true statement about all the alternate fusion proposals. Starting up a Bussard reaction does require a certain amount of energy, but not to a "requires a fission reactor" extreme.

(Besides, it might be possible to launch a running Bussard reactor, jumpstarted on the ground. Given how it works, 8 or 10G vs the 1G it already has to work in may not be a significant difference. It almost certainly would be possible to launch a running focus fusion device, though I'm a lot more skeptical about that one. Well, I'm skeptical about the whole field, but some are more plausible than others.)

[icey]

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