Impossible Drive: Breaking Newton's Third Law?

The EM Drive, also known as the Impossible Drive, is a theoretical engine technology that claims to create thrust without any fuel or propellant. The concept has been highly controversial within the scientific community as it violates Newton's Third Law of Motion, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Despite this setback, tests conducted by NASA scientists and an independent researcher in Germany have conceded that the propulsion system does produce thrust. This has sparked new discussions and research into the potential of the EM Drive, with some physicists proposing theories that could explain its seemingly impossible behaviour.

The EM Drive's ability to create thrust without fuel

The EM Drive, or electromagnetic drive, is a propulsion system that uses electromagnetic waves as fuel and creates thrust by bouncing microwaves back and forth within a metal cavity. The drive was first designed by British scientist Roger Shawyer in 1999 and has been the subject of much hype and controversy due to its potential to get humans to Mars in just 10 weeks without the need for heavy rocket fuel. Despite initial skepticism and challenges in detecting the drive's exhaust, recent studies suggest that the EM Drive may not defy Newton's third law after all.

According to Newton's third law, everything must have an equal and opposite reaction, which means that something needs to be pushed out of the propulsion system for it to move forward. This seemed to be a problem for the EM Drive, as it does not use any fuel propellants and therefore does not have a traditional exhaust system. However, researchers from COMSOL, the University of Helsinki, and the University of Jyväskylä in Finland have proposed a potential solution to this dilemma.

Their peer-reviewed study published in AIP Advances suggests that the EM Drive produces an exhaust in the form of light, specifically photons that become paired up and shoot out of the metal cavity to produce thrust. These paired photons have no net electromagnetic field, which makes them difficult to detect. The researchers suggest that these escaping photons are the equal and opposite reaction that produces the EM Drive's thrust.

While this hypothesis is based on theoretical calculations, it is not the first time that photons have been proposed for spacecraft propulsion. For example, Bill Nye's solar sail also relies on photons for propulsion. The EM Drive's ability to create thrust without fuel has significant implications for space travel, as it could reduce the need for heavy and expensive rocket fuel. However, further testing and peer review are needed to confirm the drive's functionality and explore its potential for future space exploration.

The EM Drive's potential to change space travel

The EM Drive, also known as the "Impossible Drive", is a propulsion system that uses electromagnetic waves as fuel. It creates thrust by bouncing microwaves back and forth within a metal cavity. This technology has the potential to revolutionise space travel by eliminating the need for heavy, expensive rocket fuel.

The EM Drive was first designed by British scientist Roger Shawyer in 1999. According to Shawyer's calculations, the EM Drive could produce enough thrust to propel humans to Mars in just 70 days and even reach the Alpha Centauri star system in 92 years. This would be a significant improvement over current chemical propulsion technology, which would take thousands of years to reach Alpha Centauri.

The EM Drive's potential lies in its ability to provide propellant-less propulsion, which could result in significant savings for low Earth orbit (LEO) operations such as the International Space Station (ISS). Without the need for fuel, the frequency of fuel resupply missions could be drastically reduced, and the structural stress caused by re-boost manoeuvres could be eliminated. This could prolong the operational lifespan of the ISS and future LEO space stations.

Additionally, the EM Drive could be used for geostationary orbit (GEO) satellites. By replacing the conventional apogee engine, attitude thrusters, and propellant volume with an EM Drive, the launch mass of a typical geostationary communications satellite could be reduced from 3 tons to 1.3 tons. The satellite could then use the EM Drive to propel itself from LEO to GEO in just 36 days.

The EM Drive also has the potential to reduce travel times for crewed missions to Mars and the outer planets. According to NASA's Dr. White, a 90-metric-ton, 2-megawatt nuclear electric propulsion mission to Mars could take only 70 days for the transit from Earth to Mars, followed by a 90-day stay and a 70-day return transit. This would be a significant improvement over current chemical propulsion systems, which require multiple heavy-lift launch vehicles.

Furthermore, the EM Drive could enable more flexible mission strategies by eliminating the need to consider the two-year interplanetary conjunction launch windows that govern Earth-Mars transit missions. This flexibility could help stabilise and routine Mars crew rotation timetables.

While the EM Drive shows promising potential for space travel, it is important to note that there are still challenges and uncertainties surrounding the technology. The EM Drive appears to violate Newton's third law, which states that everything must have an equal and opposite reaction. As the EM Drive does not use fuel propellants and does not have an exhaust, it seems to defy the laws of physics by producing thrust without something being pushed out of the propulsion system.

However, a recent study by physicists at the COMSOL company, the University of Helsinki, and the University of Jyväskylä in Finland suggests that the EM Drive may not actually defy Newton's third law. Their hypothesis states that the exhaust produced by the EM Drive is light, specifically photons that become paired up and shoot out of the metal cavity to create thrust. These paired photons have no net electromagnetic field, which makes them invisible from an electromagnetic point of view and challenging to detect.

While the EM Drive's potential to change space travel is intriguing, further testing and research are needed to verify its effectiveness and address the underlying scientific principles.

The EM Drive's controversial concept

The EM Drive, also known as the "Impossible Drive", is a theoretical engine technology that claims to create thrust without any fuel or propellant. The concept has been highly controversial as it violates Newton's Third Law of Physics, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This law, also known as the conservation of momentum, is fundamental to not only Newtonian mechanics but also electromagnetism, General Relativity, and all of quantum field theory.

The EM Drive was first designed by British scientist Roger Shawyer in 1999. It works by using electromagnetic waves as fuel and creating thrust by bouncing microwaves back and forth within a metal cavity to trigger motion. According to Shawyer's calculations, this could produce enough thrust to propel humans to Mars in just 70 days and even reach the next star system, Alpha Centauri, in 92 years, all without the need for rocket fuel.

The controversy surrounding the EM Drive stems from the fact that it does not appear to have an exhaust or any fuel propellants, which are necessary for the creation of thrust according to Newton's Third Law. However, tests conducted by NASA scientists at the Eagleworks lab and an independent researcher in Germany have confirmed that the EM Drive does indeed produce thrust. This has led to debates and models that attempt to explain how the EM Drive could work without breaking Newton's laws.

One such model, proposed by physicists at the COMSOL company, the University of Helsinki, and the University of Jyväskylä in Finland, suggests that the EM Drive produces an exhaust in the form of light or photons. These photons become paired up with another out-of-phase photon, allowing them to shoot out of the metal cavity and produce thrust. The paired photons have no net electromagnetic field, which makes them invisible from an electromagnetic point of view and explains why they have been difficult to detect.

Another theory, proposed by researchers from the University of Lisbon, Portugal, suggests that the pilot wave theory of quantum physics could explain the EM Drive's behaviour. According to this theory, particles occupy an exact position at all times, which goes against the widely accepted Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics. However, this idea has been widely dismissed by experts, who argue that it is speculative and not based on experimental data.

The EM Drive's challenge to the laws of physics

The EM Drive, also known as the "Impossible Drive", is a theoretical engine technology that claims to create thrust without any fuel or propellant. The concept has been highly controversial within the scientific community as it violates Newton's Third Law of Motion, which states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

The EM Drive was first designed by British scientist Roger Shawyer in 1999. It uses electromagnetic waves as fuel, creating thrust by bouncing microwaves back and forth within a metal cavity to trigger motion. Shawyer's calculations suggest that this could produce enough thrust to propel humans to Mars in just 70 days and even reach the next star system, Alpha Centauri, in 92 years, all without the need for rocket fuel.

The Challenge to Newton's Third Law

The controversy surrounding the EM Drive stems from the fact that it appears to break Newton's Third Law. In the case of propulsion, this law dictates that something must be pushed out of the back of the propulsion system for it to move forward. However, the EM Drive does not use any fuel propellants and therefore does not produce exhaust, seemingly breaking the law of conservation of momentum.

Proposed Solutions

Physicists have proposed several explanations to reconcile the EM Drive with Newton's Third Law. One suggestion is that the exhaust produced by the EM Drive is in the form of light, specifically photons that become paired up and shoot out of the metal cavity to produce thrust. These paired photons may have cancelled each other out, making them invisible from an electromagnetic perspective.

Another theory, known as the pilot wave theory, suggests that particles occupy an exact position at all times, which goes against the widely accepted Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics. This theory has been met with scepticism by experts, who argue that it requires the world to operate in unusual ways.

Implications for Physics

If the EM Drive truly breaks Newton's Third Law, it would have far-reaching implications for physics. It would mean that not only is Newton wrong, but Einstein, Maxwell, and all of quantum physics would be proven incorrect as well. The fundamental principle of relativity would be called into question, and the laws of physics would depend on position, with different frames of reference observing different laws.

While the EM Drive presents a challenge to the laws of physics as we know them, it is important to approach these claims with caution. Further testing and experimentation are necessary to validate or refute the claims made about the EM Drive's capabilities. As with any scientific endeavour, more research is needed to understand the true nature of this technology and its potential impact on our understanding of the universe.

The EM Drive's testing and verification

The EM Drive, or the "impossible engine", has been tested by several teams around the world, including NASA Eagleworks, DARPA, Dresden University of Technology, and researchers in China.

NASA Eagleworks, the Advanced Physics Propulsion Laboratory, first tested the EM Drive in 2016. They found that the drive produced a small but distinct net force, even after eliminating as many sources of error as possible. However, they had no explanation for how or why this occurred.

DARPA's investment in the EM Drive project began in 2018 and was greenlit for Phase 2 in February 2020. The project is led by Mike McCulloch, a lecturer at the University of Plymouth, who has developed a theory of Quantized Inertia (QI) to explain the effect. Jose Luis Perez Diaz in Madrid and Martin Tajmar in Dresden are carrying out the experimental side of the project. Tajmar has been working to eliminate every possible source of error and improve measurement technology.

Tests conducted by physicists at Dresden University of Technology (TU Dresden) found that the apparent thrust forces measured by the NASA team could be reproduced but also made to disappear by means of a point suspension. They attributed the apparent thrust to the engine warming up and causing the fastening elements on the scale to warp.

Researchers in China have also been testing the EM Drive. In 2016, there was media speculation that they were preparing to test the drive in space, but no results have been published. In 2024, the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) announced that they had been testing the EM Drive in low-Earth orbit and were looking into using it to power their satellites. They reported similar thrust levels to the NASA team, in the millinewtons range.

Overall, the EM Drive has undergone extensive testing and verification by multiple teams, with varying results. While some tests have shown the production of a small net force, others have failed to reproduce these results, and there is still no widely accepted explanation for how the EM Drive could work without violating the laws of physics, particularly Newton's third law.

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