Has China beaten NASA to ‘Warp Drive’ technology which will get humans to Mars in weeks?
NASA’s much-hyped EM Drive – often described as a ‘Warp Drive’ – made shockwaves around the world, with a propulsion system which seems to defy the laws of physics.
But now China has claimed that it has its own version – and it’s already working.
A video put out by a Chinese propaganda channel claims that Chinese scientists have a working prototype – something NASA has failed to achieve.
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The video claims that a working drive has been developed by CAST scientist Dr Chen Yue at China’s space agency.
The engine works by bouncing microwaves around inside an enclosed container – and could revolutionise space travel, allowing spaceships to reach Mars in weeks.
The engine has no exhaust, and would outperform any current booster used in space – and NASA tests showed ‘surprising results’ last year.
Last year, a team from the China Academy of Space Technology said that NASA’s results ‘re-confirm’ their own work – and plan to use the drive in satellites ‘as quickly as possible’.
If the EM drive works, it could revolutionise space travel.
The proposed engine works by bouncing microwaves around inside an enclosed container, and the idea was first mooted by British researcher Roger Shawyer.
But many researchers have said the idea is impossible.
Steven Thomson of the University of St Andrews wrote, ‘The EMDrive is designed to be a closed system that doesn’t emit any particles or radiation. It cannot possibly generate any thrust without breaking some seriously fundamental laws of physics. To put it bluntly, it’s like trying to pull yourself up by your shoelaces and hoping you’ll levitate.’