Reply To: Dumb question for Lerner on capacitor bank.

[Aeronaut]

I think the first thing to remember about the DPF is that it’s a pulsed device with a very short duty cycle. This makes it very good at delivering energy impulses. But Nature keeps precise books, so that longish period between pulses is where I’d expect the space charge from an individual pulse to dissipate (neutralize the ship’s charge to conserve energy).

In an earth-bound machine, I can see magnetic pulses happening fast enough to reduce the apparent weight of the machine, if not actually levitate it. But mass wouldn’t change, and the weight of the fuel consumed in a day won’t be noticeable on even a 10 ton machine.

I have a hunch that the Higgs Bosun and related particles (if they exist and are found) can get you closer to where you’re heading. Good luck- low mass asteroids would be a boon to space travel. Turn the carcass left by the miners into a ship using relatively little new material for the size…