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About Jesse Martinez
Expertise
General and specific questions about solar system and galactic astronomy, cosmology, are what I can easily answer off the top of my head. For example, what is the largest planet in the solar system? How far away is the moon? Have there been any confirmed planets in orbit around stars other than the sun? How many stars are there? The tougher ones like explaining the big bang theory and black holes I will leave to the PhD’s. Even though I could muster an answer, but would have to research it more than I would like. Would also like to answer questions that involve Astronomy with other sciences, chemistry, biology, physics, geology and mathematics as long as they are not PhD level.
Experience
I have been into astronomy since I was 8 years old. I have kept detailed journals of my observations through small telescopes. Over the years I have participated in amateur observation projects for organizations like ALPO. My personal research has involved "discovering" the moons of Jupiter with a 4½-inch Newtonian reflector. In a summer long project, I determined the existence of and plotted the orbits of the four major moons of Jupiter. From these observations, my data on orbital elements was surprisingly accurate (e.g. orbital radius and orbital period).
Education/Credentials
80 hours of college credits while studying physics and geophysics. Completed correspondence photography course while in high school. Took two semesters of electronics training at a community college. Studied computers and graduated from a technical school at the turn of the millennium, gaining A+ and Microsoft Certified Professional credentials.
Hablo Español. Si quieres preguntar en Español, estoy a su servicio.
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You are here: Experts > Science > Space and Astronomy for Kids > Astronomy > space travel
Expert: Jesse Martinez - 11/12/2009
Question
Why does it take so long for a probe to reach the outer solar system. I am studying physics and have been playing around with some scenarios where we could reach Neptune and Pluto in a few months. With a slow acceleration we could even reach the Centauri system within six years, or less. Why is this not being done?
Answer
Hello Juan,
Physics is an interesting subject. You have come across an idea that fascinates most. Yes, even slow accelerations sustained over time can yield incredible speeds. However, sustaining those accelerations over the required weeks or months is impossible at this time.
To accelerate a small package, even one that is less than 100 pounds would require tons of fuel. Then you would need hundreds of tons of fuel to accelerate the fuel and so on. For a sustained acceleration you would need a source of power that is not onboard, like the sun's radiation or the planets' gravities. I have not worked out the particulars, but I believe there is a chance here to get out there faster using the sun to produce electricity for an ionic type drive. Try figuring that out. Chemical propulsion with what we have today doesn't cut it.
It all comes down to weight; the ratio of payload to fuel. Since typically the fuel is the greatest weight of a space launch, that is where the first impovements needs to come.
Come up with something here Juan, and you will go far.
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