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posted by martyb on Thursday April 21 2016, @11:29PM   Printer-friendly
from the imagine-the-possibilities dept.

The proposed radio frequency (RF) resonant cavity thruster is unlike conventional thrusters and uses no reaction mass and emits no directional radiation. Designed using principles that are not supported by prevailing scientific theories, it apparently violates the law of conservation of momentum. The EmDrive, has roiled the aerospace world for the several years now, ever since it was proposed by British aerospace engineer Robert Shawyer. The essence of the claim is that by bouncing microwaves in a truncated cone, thrust will be produced out the open end. Most scientists have snorted at the idea, noting correctly that such a thing would violate physical laws. However, prestigious organizations like NASA have replicated the results showing thrusts.

MIT Technology Review has some reasoning on the subject, (possibly pay-walled) with a picture of the device. It's supposedly the so called unruh effect at play. When NASA tested the device, they measured with input of 17 W an average thrust of 91 µN (5.4 µN/W). A Chinese team used 2500 W and measured a thrust of 720 mN (288 µN/W). The expected radiation pressure is closer to 0.003 µN/W.


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  • (Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 22 2016, @01:42AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 22 2016, @01:42AM (#335538)

    > smart people forget that they don't know it all.

    I know. It's called the Dunning–Kruger effect.

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  • (Score: 2) by Bobs on Friday April 22 2016, @02:07AM

    by Bobs (1462) on Friday April 22 2016, @02:07AM (#335542)

    > smart people forget that they don't know it all.

    I know. It's called the Dunning–Kruger effect.

    Well, maybe you know but not all of us so-called smart people do.

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 22 2016, @10:23PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Friday April 22 2016, @10:23PM (#335988)

      I don't get the Dunning-Kruger effect. It seems like if you invoke it on someone then it is you who thinks they know more than they do. So it is self defeating.