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Cuneiformist
The Imperfectionist
USA
4955 Posts |
 Posted - 11/05/2005 : 14:29:43
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So according to CNN, China eyes 2017 moon landing. This is quite interesting, since the US has taked about a 2018 moon landing. Moreover, according to the article, "China [is] now developing new craft up to the Shenzhou X, eyeing a permanent space station and an eventual moon mission." This is apparently to study helium-3:quote:
The project also includes setting up a moon-based astronomical telescope, measuring the thickness of the moon's soil and the amount of helium-3 on the moon -- an element some researchers say is a perfect, non-polluting fuel source.
What does anyone know about He3? How would it fuel anything, and why isn't there any (or much) here on earth?
While I'm sure that much of China's talk is BS-- I don't think they have the GDP or science to be at the moon in just over 10 years, it would be interesting to see a space race. How easy is it to play ping-pong on the moon, I wonder? 
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Randy
SFN Regular
USA
1990 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2005 : 16:38:08 [Permalink]
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| For China to get to the moon, it'd only take a rocket with the power of say, ten billion bottle rockets. |
"We are all connected; to each other biologically, to the earth chemically, to the rest of the universe atomically."
"So you're made of detritus [from exploded stars]. Get over it. Or better yet, celebrate it. After all, what nobler thought can one cherish than that the universe lives within us all?"
-Neil DeGrasse Tyson |
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Trish
SFN Addict
USA
2102 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2005 : 20:12:18 [Permalink]
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Wasn't there a science fiction book about the moon and helium-3 mining. I alsmost want to say it was Stephen Baxter, but I'm not sure. Only it was the Japanese that started the base first, before the US. By the end of the book, the US moon colony was an independant colony and the Japanese still owned the other colony.
Anyway potential uses of He3 were addressed in the book, I'll have to see if I still have it around somewhere. If it was Baxter, the science is mostly good in his science ficition - except where it enhances the story to elaborate based on what we think we know. |
...no one has ever found a 4.5 billion year old stone artifact (at the right geological stratum) with the words "Made by God."
No Sense of Obligation by Matt Young
"Say what you will about the sweet miracle of unquestioning faith. I consider the capacity for it terrifying and vile!"
Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
They (Women Marines) don't have a nickname, and they don't need one. They get their basic training in a Marine atmosphere, at a Marine Post. They inherit the traditions of the Marines. They are Marines.
LtGen Thomas Holcomb, USMC
Commandant of the Marine Corps, 1943
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Bunga
Skeptic Friend
Sweden
74 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2005 : 20:22:00 [Permalink]
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The only things I know about He3 is that it is very, very rare on and in the Earth. The only sources of it I know of which are available within as long as a century are the Moon and Jupiter. There is some found on Earth, but in far, far too little quantities to be commercially viable.
There are a number of ways it can be used as a fuel source, though the most important one is deuterium/He3 fusion.
D + 3He => 4He (3.7 MeV) + p (14.7 MeV)
[note that the 3 and 4 from 3He and 4He denote superscript, not the normal multiplier]
Since Helium-4 (normal helium) is one of the most stable isotopes in the universe and the lone proton is easy to contain, the reaction is much less dangerous than most if not all other types of fusion.
Wikipedia has an entry on it, iirc. |
| Edited by - Bunga on 11/05/2005 20:23:06 |
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Trish
SFN Addict
USA
2102 Posts |
Posted - 11/05/2005 : 20:39:13 [Permalink]
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| Thanks Bunga, that was pretty much what was in the book, the problem was, there was only enough He3 (in the story) on the moon to keep the moon colonies going. |
...no one has ever found a 4.5 billion year old stone artifact (at the right geological stratum) with the words "Made by God."
No Sense of Obligation by Matt Young
"Say what you will about the sweet miracle of unquestioning faith. I consider the capacity for it terrifying and vile!"
Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
They (Women Marines) don't have a nickname, and they don't need one. They get their basic training in a Marine atmosphere, at a Marine Post. They inherit the traditions of the Marines. They are Marines.
LtGen Thomas Holcomb, USMC
Commandant of the Marine Corps, 1943
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2005 : 12:16:35 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Bunga
D + 3He => 4He (3.7 MeV) + p (14.7 MeV)
[note that the 3 and 4 from 3He and 4He denote superscript, not the normal multiplier]
Here's a little help:
D + 3He => 4He (3.7 MeV) + p (14.7 MeV)
To make this line, type:
[sup]3[/sup]He and [sup]4[/sup]He
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Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
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Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2005 : 12:18:52 [Permalink]
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In order to write:
H2SO4
H[sub]2[/sub]SO[sub]4[/sub]
Unfortunately there's no way of making numbers stand on top of eachother,
this is the closest as far as I know: 42He |
Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
| Edited by - Dr. Mabuse on 11/06/2005 12:23:58 |
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Hawks
SFN Regular
Canada
1383 Posts |
Posted - 11/06/2005 : 13:42:25 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Trish
Wasn't there a science fiction book about the moon and helium-3 mining. I alsmost want to say it was Stephen Baxter, but I'm not sure. Only it was the Japanese that started the base first, before the US. By the end of the book, the US moon colony was an independant colony and the Japanese still owned the other colony.
Anyway potential uses of He3 were addressed in the book, I'll have to see if I still have it around somewhere. If it was Baxter, the science is mostly good in his science ficition - except where it enhances the story to elaborate based on what we think we know.
Sounds like "Space" by said Stephen Baxter. Does the name "Malenfant" ring a bell? |
METHINKS IT IS LIKE A WEASEL
It's a small, off-duty czechoslovakian traffic warden! |
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Bunga
Skeptic Friend
Sweden
74 Posts |
Posted - 11/07/2005 : 08:57:53 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Dr. Mabuse
In order to write:
H2SO4
H[sub]2[/sub]SO[sub]4[/sub]
Unfortunately there's no way of making numbers stand on top of eachother,
this is the closest as far as I know: 42He
Thanks, I should have looked more carefully at the avaiable forum codes. |
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 11/07/2005 : 14:23:25 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Bunga
quote:
Originally posted by Dr. Mabuse
In order to write:
H2SO4
H[sub]2[/sub]SO[sub]4[/sub]
Unfortunately there's no way of making numbers stand on top of eachother,
this is the closest as far as I know: 42He
Thanks, I should have looked more carefully at the avaiable forum codes.
These haven't been documented in the FAQ on available forum code. I'd guess Dave_W would know more about why. Most likely is that updating the FAQ has been a low priority. |
Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
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Dave W.
Info Junkie
USA
26022 Posts |
Posted - 11/07/2005 : 15:58:44 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Dr. Mabuse
Most likely is that updating the FAQ has been a low priority.
Bingo. That, and the [sub] and [sup] tags are our newest. |
- Dave W. (Private Msg, EMail)
Evidently, I rock!
Why not question something for a change?
Visit Dave's Psoriasis Info, too. |
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