NASA confirms(?) EmDrive - can pilot wave carry momentum?

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SUMMARY

NASA has published a peer-reviewed paper confirming the existence of the EmDrive, a closed resonant chamber that allegedly operates without violating Newton's third law. The hypothesis suggests that momentum may be carried by pilot waves, referencing Couder's experiments on hydrodynamic quantum analogs. However, the discussion highlights the lack of a well-developed theoretical framework and experimental evidence supporting the claims made in the paper. Consequently, the EmDrive remains a contentious topic, currently banned from further discussion on the forum.

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  • Knowledge of resonant chamber design
  • Basic principles of quantum mechanics
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  • Explore the design and functionality of closed resonant chambers
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jarekduda
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It is hard not to hear that NASA has just published paper claiming confirmation of "impossible drive" - closed resonant chamber:
http://arc.aiaa.org/doi/full/10.2514/1.B36120
http://www.sciencealert.com/it-s-of...wed-em-drive-paper-has-finally-been-published
http://motherboard.vice.com/read/nasas-peer-reviewed-paper-on-the-emdrive-is-now-online

Not to violate 3rd Newton's law, their main hypothesis is that this momentum is carried by pilot waves - they cite Couder's experiments ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrodynamic_quantum_analogs ), nicely explained in this Veritasium video:


In contrast to EM waves, pilot waves could escape through metal walls of the resonator - but the question is if they could carry some tiny momentum or energy?
Are there some experimental upper bounds for such momentum or energy?
 
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jarekduda said:
In contrast to EM waves, pilot waves could escape through metal walls of the resonator - but the question is if they could carry some tiny momentum or energy?
Are there some experimental upper bounds for such momentum or energy?
These questions are premature, as there's no well-developed theory behind the authors' speculation that pilot waves may allow them to evade Newton's third law and conservation of momentum, and no experimental evidence beyond the claims made in the paper itself.

The em-drive has been and still is on our banned topics list so this thread is closed, at least until we decide when and how to remove it from the list.

See also https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/nasas-em-drive.884753/
 
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