Space launches have evoked the same vivid image for decades: bright orange flames exploding beneath a rocket as it lifts off and thunders into the sky. An alter

This book gives an in-depth analysis of the physical phenomena of thrust production by laser radiation, as well as laser propulsion engines, and laser-propelled

Laser ablation describes the interaction of intense optical fields with matter, in which atoms are selectively driven off by thermal or nonthermal mechanisms. T

"The Starflight Handbook is an compendium of the many and varied methods for traversing the vast interstellar gulf."--Publisher.

Solar sailing - using the sun as a propellant - offers the possibility of low-cost long-distance missions that are impossible with conventional spacecraft. This