Russia Patent RU2106287C1: Complex Technology for Planetary and Interplanetary Navigation
Patent Number: RU2106287C1 Title: Complex Technology of Planetary and Interplanetary Navigation Assignee: Russian Federation Filed: ~1993–1996 (granted 1998) Jurisdiction: Russia (foreign) Source: patents.google.com/patent/RU2106287C1/en Track Directory (Physics_Math): 1_Track/ — 16-coil internal array with six rim MHD plasma emitters; dual-mode (planetary magnetic drive + plasma jet) maps to rotating EM field propulsion research
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Overview
RU2106287C1 is among the most technically explicit Russian patents in this archive. The first diagram (Figure 2 in the patent) shows a classic disc-with-dome craft geometry: three stacked cross-sections (labeled I, II, III from top) each showing a lenticular disc with a hemispherical dome on the upper surface, attached to a central vertical shaft (component 2) with a connector fitting (3) at the bottom. A bottom-view detail shows the disc underside as a flat circular plate with a central hub (crosshair symbol at center) and six radially-positioned thruster nozzles or field emitters (6), each marked with spark/discharge symbols indicating directed electromagnetic or plasma jet emission from the disc rim perimeter.
The second diagram (Figure 3) shows the internal top-view layout of the disc: a central core solenoid (10) surrounded by an array of 16 radially-arranged electromagnetic coils (11, 12) — visible as concentric-ring symbols distributed around the disc interior — plus four elongated structures (13) extending from the center core toward the rim, which represent either waveguide conduits or field-shaping ferrite poles. Additional components (14, 15, 16, 17) at the disc periphery correspond to the rim-mounted plasma emitters or magnetohydrodynamic channels.
Physics Mechanism: Dual-Mode Operation
The patent's title, "complex technology of planetary and interplanetary navigation," explicitly claims the vehicle is designed not merely for atmospheric flight but for deep space operations. This requires the propulsion system to function in vacuum — ruling out purely atmospheric MHD mechanisms — and instead implies direct-drive electromagnetic propulsion using the interaction between the craft's own field and the ambient magnetic environment (planetary magnetosphere, solar wind field, interplanetary magnetic field).
In this regime the propulsion principle shifts from classical MHD (requiring a conducting fluid medium) to magneto-gravitational coupling: the vehicle's solenoid-generated field B_craft interacts with the external field B_ext to produce a force:
F = ∇(m · B_ext)
where m is the craft's magnetic dipole moment. By modulating m via current control in the solenoid array, the craft can produce a continuously variable translational force without expelling any propellant.
The key engineering insight is that a superconducting solenoid with large magnetic moment m (achievable with high-temperature superconductors at modest cryogenic cost) positioned in a planetary magnetic field of order B_ext ~ 10⁻⁵ T (Earth surface) to 10⁻⁹ T (interplanetary) produces forces that are marginal for acceleration but become significant for long-duration transit in deep space — effectively a magnetic analog of the solar sail. For Earth-to-orbit applications, the disc geometry's large-area coil array augments the effective magnetic moment by distributing flux capture across the entire disc planform.
The six rim-mounted plasma emitters in the Figure 2 bottom view provide the atmospheric propulsion mode: each emitter ionizes ambient air and accelerates it rearward by electromagnetic fields, producing thrust by momentum transfer without moving parts. The switching between planetary magnetic drive (deep space) and plasma jet drive (atmospheric entry/departure) is controlled by the same central solenoid network, unified under a single electrical architecture. This dual-mode capability is precisely what would be required for a craft observed performing transmedium operations — transitioning from high-altitude hypersonic flight to low-altitude hovering and back.
Engineering and Strategic Assessment
The patent cites no propulsion scaling data or power budget, consistent with the Russian practice of filing protective IP without full technical disclosure in the public patent. The reference to "interplanetary navigation" in a 1990s Russian patent, filed during the economically collapsed post-Soviet period, raises the question of whether this patent describes actual operational technology or theoretical extrapolation from classified program knowledge that the inventor was not permitted to fully disclose. The level of engineering specificity — 16-coil internal array geometry, six rim emitters, specific shaft-and-connector coupling — argues for the former.
Sources
This information was compiled from Break_thrus.mdx staging file.