One of biggest things holding humans back from taking the next big leap in space exploration, is propulsion --  or lack of it, actually.

While advances have been made in the engines that power our satellites and space probes (like those that delivered the Mars rovers), our spacecrafts' mass are typically made up of at least 50% of their fuel payload. Our ships have to carry a huge amount of fuel around with them in order to get where they're going. Well, that might not always be the case, based on some new research carried out by NASA. 

Wired reports that the American space agency recently tested a new space drive which, if the results are proved to be correct, could revolutionize space travel. It's called the "Cannae Drive," and it was invented by an American named Guido Fetta. The drive's name is apparently a reference to the Battle of Cannae, involving Hannibal defeating a Roman army despite being outmatched. 

Fetta built his "propellant-less microwave thruster" and eventually convinced NASA to test it. And they did. The results of the testing were just presented at the Joint Propulsion Conference in Ohio. And for the time being, the results are good. 

The testing consisted of five scientists spending six days preparing the experiments to test the Cannae and then two days of putting it through different test configurations. The results indicated that Fetta's drive produced "30 to 50 micronewtons," according to Wired.

Now, that's not enough to move a brick, but it's still amazing because according to the fundamental principles of physics the drive shouldn't produce any force at all. 

NASA published the findings in a paper entitled, "Anomalous Thrust Production from an RF [radio frequency] Test Device Measured on a Low-Thrust Torsion Pendulum." In it they state:

"Test results indicate that the RF resonant cavity thruster design, which is unique as an electric propulsion device, is producing a force that is not attributable to any classical electromagnetic phenomenon and therefore is potentially demonstrating an interaction with the quantum vacuum virtual plasma." 

This means that if the results are indeed accurate, we could be dealing with a huge breakthrough that could alter our understanding of the Universe. Microwave drives like the Cannae could make the cost of satellites and space stations a fraction of what they are now by eliminating the need to carry fuel. Astronauts could travel to Mars in weeks, instead of months and months.