NASA measured ‘impossible’ EM thrust – but is it really a big deal?

Two years ago, NASA scientists announced they measured something that should not be possible – thrust from an engine that does not use propellant.

Now, after a year-long review process, a paper describing the work has been published in the Journal of Propulsion and Power. It describes how the NASA team measured a thrust of about 1.2 millinewtons per kilowatt from the controversial electromagnetic or EM drive, though they are at a loss to explain how.

The new work will add fresh impetus to the technology which has been touted by some as the future of space travel and by others as pseudoscientific hokum. But it is far from conclusive proof that the EM drive really works.

This is similar to the situation regarding the anomalous results detected in so-called "cold fusion" experiments, otherwise known as low energy nuclear reactions (LENR). There is obviously something going on, but there is no theoretical basis for these results -- yet. To read more, click here.