Russia’s Plasma Engine Breakthrough Could Cut Mars Travel to Just 30 Days

Russia’s Rosatom has unveiled a plasma electric rocket engine that could reduce Mars travel time to just 30-60 days by using a magnetic plasma accelerator instead of conventional fuel combustion. The engine, which propels charged particles at speeds of up to 100 km/s, aims to make interplanetary missions faster and safer for astronauts. A laboratory prototype has been developed, with a flight-ready model expected by 2030.

Russia’s Plasma Engine Breakthrough Could Cut Mars Travel to Just 30 Days

Russia’s state-owned nuclear corporation, Rosatom, has announced a significant breakthrough in plasma electric rocket technology, which could cut travel time between Earth and Mars to just one or two months.

Unlike traditional rocket engines that rely on fuel combustion, this propulsion system uses a magnetic plasma accelerator to achieve unprecedented speeds in space, according to a report by Russia’s Izvestia newspaper.

“A plasma rocket motor is a type of electric propulsion system that operates using two electrodes. When charged particles pass between them and high voltage is applied, a magnetic field is generated, propelling the particles out of the engine. This directed motion of plasma creates thrust,” Izvestia quoted Egor Biriulin, a researcher at Rosatom’s scientific institute in Troitsk, as explaining.

The system utilizes hydrogen as fuel, accelerating charged particles—electrons and protons—to speeds of 100 km/s (62 miles/s). To cover the 140-million-mile distance between Earth and Mars in just 30 days, the rocket would need to sustain an average speed of approximately 195,000 miles per hour.

Several organizations, including the European Space Agency and the United States, are also working on advanced propulsion technologies aimed at reducing interplanetary travel time and making space exploration more practical.

Russia’s Plasma Engine Breakthrough Could Cut Mars Travel to Just 30 Days

According to Izvestia, the Russian plasma rocket is expected to generate a thrust of around 6 Newtons and propel particles at speeds up to 100 km/s. This breakthrough could also enable missions beyond the Solar System.

Alexey Voronov, first deputy director general for science at Rosatom’s Research Institute in Troitsk, emphasized the benefits of the technology: “Current Mars missions using conventional engines take almost a year one way, exposing astronauts to high levels of cosmic radiation. Plasma engines could shorten the journey to 30-60 days, making it feasible to send astronauts to Mars and back much more safely.”

Rosatom’s Troitsk Institute has already developed a laboratory prototype of the plasma engine. The next step involves extensive ground testing to optimize its performance, with a flight-ready model anticipated by 2030.