Fusion-Enabled Comprehensive Exploration of the Heliosphere Dr Setthivoine You, Helicity Space (PI) Dr Ryan Weed, Helicity Space (Co-I) Dr Alan Stern, Helicity Space (Co-I) Prof Merav Opher, Boston Univ. (Co-I) Dr Seth Pree, Helicity Space NASA NIAC Symposium, Philadelphia, PA, 2025-09-09 | 24-NIAC25B-0110 - APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE - Helicity Space Corp. (c) 2025 Overview Select Results to Date We need to go farther, and we need to go faster, and we need to probe in multiple dimensions of the heliosphere simultaneously to resolve the key attributes of the heliosphere. Among these mysteries are: • the width of the heliosheath • the nature of the heliopause • the source of anomalous cosmic rays • the turbulent nature of the heliospheric tail Voyager and New Horizons have provided invaluable data, but modern instrumentation can now fully capture key phenomena like pickup ions and weak magnetic fields. Other information comes from Earth-based line-of-sight observations. This region is starved for in situ observational data. USE NEW PLASMA HEATING TECHNIQUES FOR FUSION Leverages recent breakthroughs in magnetic reconnection heating to achieve a scalable, efficient, and more compact fusion solution compared to traditional methods. PERISTALTIC MAGNETIC COMPRESSION: passive arrangement of magnetic coils to compress the plasma in 3D without dynamic material liners at a constant magnetic field energy. PLECTONEMIC MAGNETIC CONFINEMENT: This recently discovered, stable magnetic configuration provides inherent plasma confinement without requiring solid walls. Its robustness to translation and merging capabilities, combined with reconnection heating, offer a unique pathway to achieving fusion conditions. MAGNETIC RECONNECTION HEATING: Directly heats ions, eliminates the need for complex plasma shaping, and enables rapid temperature increases with feasible magnetic field strengths. COMPACTNESS & SIMPLICITY: By preheating plasma with reconnection and merging multiple plectonemes, the Helicity Drive reduces the compression ratio and engineering complexities associated with traditional MIF concepts, achieving a mass power density and volumetric power density at least 10x higher than other Nuclear Fission, Fission-Fusion, and CW magnetic confinement fusion approaches. HIGH POWER DENSITY LEADS TO EXTREME DELTA-V's: Spacecraft high-speed capability allows the constellation spacecraft to reach transit velocities quickly, slow down at targets, and reaccelerate to maximize scientific return. Schematic of ECLAIR experiment showing salient features: 4 plasma guns forming plectonemic plasma jets merging at the inlet of the peristaltic magnetic nozzle. Reconnection-heated plasma is compressed in the converging section to peak conditions at the throat for further expansion in the diverging section. 3D MHD simulations performed on the LA-COMPASS supercomputer simulation in collaboration with Los Alamos National Laboratory, with the support of the DOE INFUSE program. The simulations show merging and braiding of the four plasma jets in the magnetic nozzle (passive, non-peristaltic in this run). Single frame from a high speed (5M frames per second) camera showing typical plasma shot with four collimated jets merging and travelling inside the peristaltic magnetic nozzle of ECLAIR. ECLAIR experiment (April 2025) as seen during a plasma shot with a phone camera and with operator. Design Point for Heliosphere Spacecrafts - Pulsed Power Inductive Energy Storage - Opening Switch - System of Systems Architecture study of components ongoing works - Schematic of Helicity Drive Reactor Section Initial Architecture Propellant Mix Model - Performance Model - Assumptions - Model Results (Specific Impulse, Thrust, Mass Flow, Jet Power scaling) Mission INITIAL PAYLOAD CONSIDERATION: Based on the Helio Decadal Interstellar Probe Study. Exploration strategy utilizes high delta-v capability to deploy constellations across multiple heliographic latitudes and longitudes, achieving unprecedented access and transit speeds across the heliosphere and interstellar medium boundaries. 1. You, Setthivoine et al., "Helicity Drive: A Novel Scalable Fusion Concept for Deep Space Propulsion", AIAA Propulsion & Energy Forum, AIAA 2020-3835, (2020) https://doi.org/10.2514/6.2020-3835 2. Brown, Michael, Kaitlin Gelber, and Matiwos Mebratu. "Taylor state merging at SSX: experiment and simulation." Plasma 3.1 (2020): 27-37. 3. You, Setthivoine, et al. "The Mochi LabJet experiment for measurements of canonical helicity injection in a laboratory astrophysical jet." The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series 236.2 (2018): 29. 4. Bellan P. M., "Traveling mirror compressor delay line with nonconstant capacitance.", Phys. Fluids, 24, 11 (1981) 5. Cassibry, Jason, et al. "Case and development path for fusion propulsion." Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets 52.2 (2015): 595-612. 6. Opher, Merav, et al. "Solar wind with Hydrogen Ion charge Exchange and Large-Scale Dynamics (SHIELD) DRIVE Science Center." Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences 10 (2023): 1143909 7. Lapointe, M. R., et al. Gradient Field Imploding Liner Fusion Propulsion System: NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts Phase I Final Report. No. M-1471. 2018