That raptor rocket surely doesn't have *much* higher delta V than, say, the Saturn 5? No chemical reaction is going to be that much more efficient, no matter that you turn it into a superheated flying bomb. Surely for human exploration beyond the Moon you really need (a) a moon base, (b) and orbital assembly plant supplied from the moon base, and (c) some form of nuclei/ion propulsion for your long haul space craft (which also need shielding, of course!)
Or use chemical propellant to rendezvous with one of those asteroids I mentioned, then sit back and wait out the 9 months or so to Mars. (Preferably installing a permanent base in the asteroid, which effectively becomes a mars shuttle.) I wish I could type this without my hands shaking with excitement. We're actually trying to go to Mars!!!!!! -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Everything List" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/everything-list. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
