Plasma is the central component of all types of “electric” space propulsion. Electric currents produce magnetic fields which are then used to accelerate electrically charged ions and electrons in order to produce thrust. In ion thrusters, the plasma consists of positive ions and an equal amount of electrons. Recently a scientist published a new concept in the area of plasma ion propulsion systems for space travel. [1] This new concept proposes a redesign of the ion propulsion engine such that the energetic thrust is generated in the form of plasmoids that would decrease the travel time to Mars by a factor of ten.
References
- Fatima Ebrahimi, An Alfvenic Reconnecting Plasmoid Thruster, Journal of Plasma Physics, 2020, 86(6), 905860614 DOI: 10.1017/S0022377820001476
Plasmoids are a coherent structure of plasma and magnetic fields. Plasmoids have been proposed to explain natural phenomena such as ball lightning, magnetic bubbles in the magnetosphere, and objects in cometary tails, in solar windows, and the solar atmosphere, and in the heliosphere sheet. The plasmoid appears in an elongated plasma cylinder in the direction of the magnetic field. Plasmoids possess a measurable magnetic moment, a measurable translational speed, and transverse electric field, and a measurable size. The physicist first came up with this new idea while hearing about the kind of plasma particle speeds that were achievable in the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) national spherical torus experiment. The plasmoids were measured to move at speeds around 20 km per second, which seems like a significant amount of thrust. The researcher explained that the thruster behaves like a Tokamak. A Tokamak is a device that uses a powerful magnetic field to confine plasma in the shape of a torus as in nuclear fusion power systems. The Tokamak was originally conceptualized in the 1950’s where the first working Tokamak was in 1958 attributed to Natan Yavlinsky, a Russian nuclear physicist. The fusion reactor is a popular research topic with billion dollar budgets designed for the next generation nuclear energy technology. None however have been capable of creating more power than it uses making this technology less than practical. The concept that is proposed is for space flight however, and fusion technology can hypothetically remain very light weight while producing a significant amount of thrust. This new design is reported to have an Alfvenic out flow from the magnetic field reconnection site resulting in the thrust being proportional to the square of the magnetic field strength and does not depend upon the mass of the ion species of the plasma. This results in theoretical velocities of 20 to 500 km per second during the computational simulations.
Computer simulations suggest that this design change in the plasma thrust engine is capable of generating thrusts of hundreds of kilometers per second, which is an order of magnitude (X10) faster than other thrusters. This means the new design could move space vehicles faster and shorten the length of time traveling by a factor of 10. This brings many more destinations into range for possible manned space flight. This new technology also addresses a major issue of manned space flight. This is related to cosmic radiation and human DNA damage. The longer humans remain in deep space, that is outside of the earth’s magnetic field, the cosmic rays are capable of reaching our DNA causing damage/mutations, creating diseases such as cancer and leukemia, etc. The faster travel would allow for shorter exposure times. The shorter times will also reduce the psycho-emotional-mental toll of having to travel long distances during interplanetary space travel.
The Spiritual Insights that we receive from this type of research is related to this new thruster technology that may be paralleled to our lives. What I am thinking of is in relation to the direction and rate change our lives take when we encounter the Messiah, believe in the Lord God our Father in heaven, and receive the Holy Spirit of God into our hearts. This is paralleled to the ten fold increase in speed which simulations prove are possible with this new ion thrust engine design. This change of configuration of the ion trust design parallels what happens when we encounter God in heaven! When we are born into the world, every man, woman, and child, are set on the task of searching for the Lord God in heaven who created us. This is how we understand what the Torah tells us according to Devarim / Deuteronomy 4:29.
ספר דברים פרק ד
כט וּבִקַּשְׁתֶּם מִשָּׁם אֶת-יְהוָֹה אֱלֹהֶיךָ וּמָצָאתָ כִּי תִדְרְשֶׁנּוּ בְּכָל-לְבָבְךָ וּבְכָל-נַפְשֶׁךָ:
Devarim / Deuteronomy 4:29
4:29 But if from there you will seek the LORD your God, you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul. (NASB)
I have had people mock this idea of seeking and finding the Lord God in heaven making the statement “what is God lost?” This mocking is in regards to what God’s Word says according to the Torah and elsewhere, such as in 1 Chronicles 22:19 Now set your heart and soul to seek the LORD your God. (NASB) and even mocking what Yeshua said according to Matthew 7:7 ‘Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 7:8 ‘For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. (NASB) The life we are born with, the one that walks in the way of the world, when we find the Lord and ask Him into our lives, and He helps us to live our lives according to His Word, we are transformed, our desires, wants, and loves, our walk (what we do) our entire lives change! This is what Paul meant when he said according to Romans 6:4, “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death in order that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the father, we too might walk in newness of life.” This is consistent with what Yeshua said according to Matthew 16:24-26 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” The taking up of the cross is an idiom for laying one’s life down and dying to the old self. This is why Paul speaks of losing one’s life and finding an entirely new life in Yeshua. When we believe in Yeshua, our Father in heaven gives His Spirit into our hearts and lives, we are transformed, our dreams are different, our desires are different, our thoughts are different! We begin to think about the things of God, love, mercy, peace, and we talk differently even. Everything in our lives is transformed in Him and by Him! This is what our lives should look like according to the Scriptures.
When we find the Lord and the Lord God in heaven finds us, we do not keep our lives as we formerly knew them. We lose our lives to find an entirely new life in Him, these are the things the Torah speaks to the gospel message as having the presence of God in our hearts and in our lives to overcome sin in our lives and live for the glory of God! This is what it means that we are more than conquerors (Romans 8:37). We can take heart and be greatly encouraged because of the Lord God in whom we trust! The scriptures say according to Isaiah 14:27 ‘For the Lord of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?’ (NASB, כז כִּי-יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת יָעָץ וּמִי יָפֵר וְיָדוֹ הַנְּטוּיָה וּמִי יְשִׁיבֶנָּה) and in Mishley / Proverbs 21:30 There is no wisdom and no understanding And no counsel against the Lord. (NASB, אֵ֣ין חָ֭כְמָה וְאֵ֣ין תְּבוּנָ֑ה וְאֵ֥ין עֵ֝צָ֗ה לְנֶ֣גֶד יְהוָֽה) These verses speak to us about always taking courage and to remain strong because the Lord God is ultimately in control, His power is unrivaled and His love endures forever. The Lord God is with us no matter where we go, and this is why and how our lives change when we remain in Him and His Word. These are things the scientific research speaks to us about, plasmoids, magnetic fields, a new design concept of an ion propulsion engine which uses plasmoids as thrust in a much more significant way, these things remind us of the how the power of God moves in our lives! You may be asking yourself “How can I experience more of God’s power in my life?” The example we may take is from Abraham. According to Bereshit / Genesis 15, Abram fought a battle against four kings of the east and rescued his nephew Lot. The Lord God appeared to Abram and said in Bereshit / Genesis 15:1, אַחַ֣ר׀ הַדְּבָרִ֣ים הָאֵ֗לֶּה הָיָ֤ה דְבַר־יְהוָה֙ אֶל־אַבְרָ֔ם בַּֽמַּחֲזֶ֖ה לֵאמֹ֑ר אַל־תִּירָ֣א אַבְרָ֗ם אָנֹכִי֙ מָגֵ֣ן לָ֔ךְ שְׂכָרְךָ֖ הַרְבֵּ֥ה מְאֹֽד׃ here we observe what the Lord said, do not fear (אַל־תִּירָ֣א) that he was Abraham’s shield (אָנֹכִי֙ מָגֵ֣ן לָ֔ךְ) and speaks of God’s exceedingly great riches (שְׂכָרְךָ֖ הַרְבֵּ֥ה מְאֹֽד). We note a few things here about what the Lord said to Abram. Abram refused the wealth of Sodom because the Lord had said that He is Abram’s great riches. This is a significant point for experiencing the power of God in our lives. We should not be in the business of longing for this world’s rewards but are called to seek the riches of God, His wisdom, and His ways. This is a significant point as relating to the power of God in our lives. The Lord is telling us in this story from the Torah how He is the one who will sustain us. These things cause us to ask the question of how much do we love this world, our culture, ungodly television (i.e. ungodliness as a means for entertainment)? These things will limit the power of God in our lives! Sometimes we think the battle Abram had against the four kings was simply a side-story and relatively unimportant. The truth of these Scriptures is in the Lord God being our shield, our strength, our help, and our wealth, He is powerful to overcome anything that life may bring our way!
Some people look at these stories from the Tanakh (Torah, Prophet, Writings, תנך), reading about God in the Scripture who delivers Israel from slavery in Egypt, dividing the Red Sea, giving water from the rock, bread from heaven and all the meat one could eat, and turning water into wine, raising the dead, healing the blind, deaf, and lame, and yet wonder why they never experience the miraculous power of God in their lives? I believe the major reason is because of one’s love of this world and not having entirely given all to the Lord! Yeshua told his disciples that those who believed in him would do greater miracles than these. (see John 14:12) They were being told that they would do greater miracles than his raising the dead, healing the blind, multiplying the bread, etc. How can this be? Certainly, the disciples experienced this. When Peter spoke to the people at the Temple in Jerusalem we are told that 3,000 people believed and were transformed and saved (see Acts 2:41). Yeshua’s ministry we are told was limited to Israel, but the disciples reached and turned the world upside down. (see Acts 17:6) This still happens today as nations and governments are transformed by the power of God through faith in Yeshua the Messiah. However, with that said, most still have no personal experience of the power of God in their lives to overcome sin.
In order to experience God’s transforming power in our lives, we must not discount God’s ability to accomplish the impossible. Throughout the Torah we read of God doing the impossible, overcoming demonic forces, defeating armies, dividing the waters in the Red Sea, giving water out of a stone, etc. Even in Bereshit / Genesis 17, we are told that God appeared to Abraham as he was 99 years old and told him that he would have a son and that the numbers of his children would be uncountable like the stars and the sand on the sea shore. The impossible was that Sarah was beyond child bearing age. This is an important point the Scriptures are making for us in regards to the impossible. Like Abraham, we have to have faith in the possibility of the miraculous. Many times we ask ourselves questions in doubt, saying “How can the Lord fix this situation,” or “How can God turn this around,” or “How can God use someone like me?” The Lord God Almighty however is THE miracle worker! The Lord demonstrates His glory through the impossible. The example the Torah gives us is on Abraham’s life, found in Bereshit / Genesis 17:1-2, א וַיְהִי אַבְרָם בֶּן-תִּשְׁעִים שָׁנָה וְתֵשַׁע שָׁנִים וַיֵּרָא יְהֹוָה אֶל-אַבְרָם וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָיו אֲנִי-אֵל שַׁדַּי הִתְהַלֵּךְ לְפָנַי וֶהְיֵה תָמִים: ב וְאֶתְּנָה בְרִיתִי בֵּינִי וּבֵינֶךָ וְאַרְבֶּה אוֹתְךָ בִּמְאֹד מְאֹד: When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” (NASB) Notice something here, God commands Abraham in the same sentence that He states He will increase his numbers, to walk before Him and be blameless. To be blameless is not about perfectly keeping the commands of God. Being blameless is related to not walking in the ways of the world. These things reveal to us that if we want to experience the power of God in our lives, we must not walk in sin. David wrote about this in Tehillim / Psalms 66:18 saying, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.” The point is we have to be willing to walk blamelessly before the Lord! Even for the Lord to hear our prayers as David wrote. James said that there are those who are doubleminded men (James 1:7-8) and this kind of person says they live by faith but only in word and not in their deeds. A person trying to live in both worlds, for God and for this world, will receive nothing from God, this is the point James is making! According to the Torah, Abraham needed to walk blameless in order to experience God’s power. Now the fulfillment of the covenant was accomplished through God’s power and based upon God’s faithfulness alone. But Abraham still needed to walk blamelessly before God according to the grace and mercy God had given him. This is expected of us too! Later on in the Torah we read how Israel also had to walk blamelessly before God. When Israel walked in sin, meaning she thoughtlessly sinned not considering what God wants, this is what it means to NOT walk blamelessly before God. Not walking blamelessly before God in the history of Israel reveals to us how the people missed out on the promised land, they wandered in the wilderness 40 years, they were conquered by their enemies, and eventually were exiled from the Promised Land to Babylon. This same principle is true for us today. Many people miss the miraculous in their lives due to the failure to walk blamelessly in response to God’s grace. God’s grace and His presence (Holy Spirit) in our lives enables us to walk blamelessly before Him. Paul said “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.” (1 Corinthians 15:10) Now in order to walk blamelessly before God, this is accomplished by being continually filled with God’s Spirit by remaining in His Word daily. The Spirit of God in our lives is synonymous to having our lives changed, and like Abram having his name changed according to Bereshit / Genesis 17:5-7. Yeshua told his disciples to wait in Jerusalem until they were endowed with power from above. (Acts 1:8) This is the giving of the Holy Spirit of God which is needed in order to accomplish God’s will according to His Word and to have the power of God in our lives. These are the Spiritual Insights that we receive from the research on the new thruster technology that may be paralleled to our lives. Our direction and rate changes when we encounter the Messiah, believe in the Lord God our Father in heaven, and receive the Holy Spirit of God into our hearts. This is how laying the scientific research down alongside of Scripture draws out these things. The change of configuration of the ion thruster design parallels the power of God that transforms our lives when we encounter the Almighty God in heaven!
