Currently the best in use method of long
distance transportation we are using today,
ion drives are the staple of long range probes.
They work via heating noble gases, such as
xenon, into a plasma, then using the Lorentz
force to propel this plasma at tens of kilometers
per second out of the rear of the drive. This
has the bonus of being the most efficient means
of propulsion in terms of thrust/mass ratios we
have; in terms of thrust/mass expended ion
drives are typically about 50 times as efficient
as rocket fuel.
The main disadvantage is that ion drives give
little thrust over long periods of time, during
which they only produce millinewtons of thrust
per second, which precludes them from use for
takeoff from planetary bodies, which means
that at least two propulsion systems are needed
for efficacy.
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