How can MHD provide thrust only by accelerating ions ?

Subject: How can MHD provide thrust only by accelerating ions ?

Date: Wed Dec 22 16:41:18 1999
Posted by yannick
Grade level: grad (science) School: No school entered.
City: No city entered. State/Province: No state entered. Country: No country entered.
Area of science: Physics
ID: 945902478.Ph

Message:


MHD is supposed to provide thrust to the Lightcraft ( a craft developped 
by the RPI). On the page http://www-aero.meche.rpi.edu/research/mhd, it is 
explained that a magnetic and an electric field can accelerate ions ( I 
perfectly understand this, as it is a mere electrodynamics problem). What 
I don' t understand is how this acceleration can provide thrust. Indeed, 
it seems that the plasma has no effects on the craft, except that it is 
responsible for the drag, but I don' t think that drag can provide any 
thrust. Can you help me?

Re: How can MHD provide thrust only by accelerating ions ?

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