Hasta La Gadget!

VASIMR, the plasma rocket capable of reducing travel time to Mars by over 80 percent, may soon get its own dedicated mission to visit an asteroid, according to Discovery News.

Originally, VASIMR (the Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket) was being built as a spare for another heading to the International Space station. But by heading for an asteroid, it could serve as a powerful demonstration of VASIMR’s plasma-based technology, the report said.

“The engine is actually firing right now,” VASIMR inventor and physicist Franklin Chang-Diaz told Discovery News. “We have lots of hurdles and challenges; we have lots of work to do. But if you look at what has happened in the last five years since we left NASA, it’s been amazing.”

VASIMR is on target for a 2014 launch to the space station; Chang-Diaz is building two engine spares, one of which could set sail for a completely different mission that NASA doesn’t invest in. Check out the full report for details.