Solar-thermal For Ground Launch
Solar thermal rockets have been proposed as a system for launching a small personal spacecraft into orbit. The design is based on a high altitude airship which uses its envelope to focus sunlight onto a tube. The propellant, which would likely be ammonia, is then fed through to produce thrust. Possible design flaws include whether the engine could produce enough thrust to overcome drag, and whether the skin of the airship wouldn't fail at hypersonic velocities. This has many similarities to the orbital airship proposed by JP Aerospace.
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