Space Train 'Solar Express' Could Shuttle Passengers to Mars in Just Two Days

An inventor has unveiled an ambitious concept design for a space train named the "Solar Express" that could be used in future to ferry passengers and cargo through space faster than any existing system, writes the Mirror.

Each train would be composed of six 50m-long cylinders in a straight line.

The cylinders would be split into cargo bays and could be swapped in-flight using maintenance robots.

The Solar Express would first accelerate with rocket boosters.

The idea is that, once launched, the space train would never stop - instead, space capsules would rendezvous with it while moving.

Solar Express inventor Charles Bombardier estimates that the train could travel at around 1% the speed of light - or around 3,000km per second (1,864 miles per second) - which could reduce the journey from Earth to Mars to just two days.

"The harvested water could also be used to create hydrogen and propellant, but the main propulsion system should take the form of ion thrusters," says Mr Bombardier on the Solar Express website.

Designed to transport cargo, vessels and people, the train would include a large "space city" that rotates around the longitudinal axis to provide artificial gravity for long-term flights.

The faster the Solar Express moves, the more expensive it would be to catch it.