Pretty straight forward question really. What are rail guns, how do they work and how likely is it that they will replace stage one rockets in the future? Why have they not done so already? Is it feasible? Or would the astronauts just get pasted due to the extreme acceleration?
In: Technology
Rail guns work on the principle of electromagnetism. Basically anything with magnetic properties can be launched via railgun. Voltage and Amperage applied to the rails (solenoids, but that’s another conversation) will determine the strength of the field that propels the magnetic material.
So why dont we use it for space launches?
Well as soon as you leave the rails the acceleration effects stop. It would be like trying to drive to the store but only hitting the gas on your driveway and coasting the rest of the way.
To accelerate fast enough and would apply a considerable amount of gforces that not only would humans not survive, but quite probably the craft as well.
The other big reason is that its not exactly energy efficient. Rail guns are actually very inefficient when it comes to converting electrical energy to mechanical energy. Using rocket engines is way more efficient.
I suppose you could have rails erected all the way out of the atmosphere, but at that point, why launch anything at all?
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