Mars in 30 days? Russia unveils prototype of plasma rocket engine.

A laboratory prototype of a plasma electric rocket engine based on a magnetic plasma accelerator has been produced by Rosatom scientists, who say it could slash travel time to Mars to one or two months.

Rosatom says that the average power of the engine, operating in pulse-periodic mode, reaches 300kW making it possible to accelerate the spacecraft to much higher speeds than conventional engines.

Mars is about 140 million miles from Earth. To cover that distance in 30 days would require an average speed of about 195,000 miles per hour

Scientists at Rosatom, Russia’s state nuclear corporation, have recently unveiled a laboratory prototype of a plasma electric rocket engine that they claim could cut travel time to Mars to just 30 to 60 days. Current chemical rockets typically take seven to nine months for the same journey. X +3

Key Technical Details

The prototype was developed at the Troitsk Institute for Innovation and Fusion Research (TRINITI). Facebook +1

• Propulsion Mechanism: The engine uses a magnetic plasma accelerator to ionize hydrogen gas into plasma and accelerate charged particles (electrons and protons) using electromagnetic fields.
• Performance: It can achieve exhaust velocities of 100 km/s (roughly 223,000 mph), far exceeding the 4.5 km/s limit of traditional chemical rockets.
• Power: The current prototype operates at 300 kW in a pulse-periodic mode and generates approximately 6 Newtons of thrust. While this thrust is low, its continuous operation in space allows for massive velocity buildup over time.
• Energy Source: To reach its full potential, the engine is designed to be paired with a compact nuclear reactor to provide the necessary high electrical power. World Nuclear News +6

Development Timeline & Goals

• Testing: Ground-based testing is currently underway in a 14-meter-long vacuum chamber to simulate space conditions.
• Flight-Ready Model: Rosatom aims to have a flight-ready version of the engine operational by 2030.
• Primary Benefit: Reducing the trip to 30–60 days would drastically lower astronauts’ exposure to harmful cosmic radiation and the physical toll of long-duration microgravity

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