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Spacecraft propulsion is any method used to accelerate spacecraft and artificial satellites. In-space propulsion exclusively deals with propulsion systems used in the vacuum of space and should not be confused with space launch or atmospheric entry.
In spacecraft propulsion, a Hall-effect thruster (HET) is a type of ion thruster in which the propellant is accelerated by an electric field. Hall-effect thrusters are sometimes referred to as Hall thrusters or Hall-current thrusters. Hall-effect thrusters use a magnetic field to limit the electrons' axial motion and then use them to ionize propellant, efficiently accelerate the ions to produce thrust, and neutralize the ions in the plume. The Hall-effect thruster is classed as a moderate specific impulse space propulsion technology and has benefited from considerable theoretical and experimental research since the 1960s.
An ion thruster, ion drive, or ion engine is a form of electric propulsion used for spacecraft propulsion. It creates thrust by accelerating ions using electricity.
A magnetoplasmadynamic (MPD) thruster (MPDT) is a form of electrically powered spacecraft propulsion which uses the Lorentz force to generate thrust. It is sometimes referred to as Lorentz Force Accelerator (LFA) or MPD arcjet.
Field-emission electric propulsion (FEEP) is an advanced electrostatic space propulsion concept, a form of ion thruster, that uses a liquid metal as a propellant – usually either caesium, indium, or mercury.
The Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) was a proposed NASA spacecraft designed to explore the icy moons of Jupiter. The main target was Europa, where an ocean of liquid water may harbor alien life. Ganymede and Callisto, which are now thought to also have liquid, salty oceans beneath their icy surfaces, were also targets of interest for the probe.
Solar electric propulsion (SEP) refers to the combination of solar cells and electric thrusters to propel a spacecraft through outer space. This technology has been exploited in a variety of spacecraft designs by the European Space Agency (ESA), the JAXA, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and NASA. SEP has a significantly higher specific impulse than chemical rocket propulsion, thus requiring less propellant mass to be launched with a spacecraft. The technology has been evaluated for missions to Mars.
An ion-propelled aircraft or ionocraft is an aircraft that uses electrohydrodynamics (EHD) to provide lift or thrust in the air without requiring combustion or moving parts. Current designs do not produce sufficient thrust for manned flight or useful loads.
The gridded ion thruster is a common design for ion thrusters, a highly efficient low-thrust spacecraft propulsion method running on electrical power by using high-voltage grid electrodes to accelerate ions with electrostatic forces.
Ion wind, ionic wind, corona wind or electric wind is the airflow induced by electrostatic forces linked to corona discharge arising at the tips of some sharp conductors subjected to high voltage relative to ground. Ion wind is an electrohydrodynamic phenomenon. Ion wind generators can also be considered electrohydrodynamic thrusters.
This is an alphabetical list of articles pertaining specifically to aerospace engineering. For a broad overview of engineering, see List of engineering topics. For biographies, see List of engineers.
Harold R. Kaufman was an American physicist, noted for his development of electrostatic ion thrusters for NASA during the 1950s and 1960s. Kaufman developed a compact ion source based on electron bombardment, the "Kaufman Ion Source," a variant of the duoplasmatron, for the purpose of spacecraft propulsion.
A colloid thruster is a type of low thrust electric propulsion rocket engine that uses electrostatic acceleration of charged liquid droplets for propulsion. In a colloid thruster, charged liquid droplets are produced by an electrospray process and then accelerated by a static electric field. The liquid used for this application tends to be a low-volatility ionic liquid.
TAU was a proposed uncrewed interstellar probe that would go to a distance of one thousand astronomical units from the Earth and Sun by the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 1987 using tested technology. One scientific purpose would be to measure the distance to other stars via stellar parallax. Studies continued into 1990, working with a launch in the 2005–2010 timeframe.
Busek Co. Inc. is an American spacecraft propulsion company that builds thrusters, electronics, and various systems for spacecraft.
The NASA Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) project at Glenn Research Center is a gridded electrostatic ion thruster about three times as powerful as the NSTAR used on Dawn and Deep Space 1 spacecraft. It was used in DART, launched in 2021.
Atmosphere-breathing electric propulsion, or air-breathing electric propulsion, shortly ABEP, is a propulsion technology for spacecraft, which could allow thrust generation in low orbits without the need of on-board propellant, by using residual gases in the atmosphere as propellant. Atmosphere-breathing electric propulsion could make a new class of long-lived, low-orbiting missions feasible.
The NASA Solar Technology Application Readiness (NSTAR) is a type of spacecraft ion thruster called electrostatic ion thruster. It is a highly efficient low-thrust spacecraft propulsion running on electrical power generated by solar arrays. It uses high-voltage electrodes to accelerate ions with electrostatic forces.
A thruster is a spacecraft propulsion device used for orbital station-keeping, attitude control, or long-duration, low-thrust acceleration, often as part of a reaction control system. A vernier thruster or gimbaled engine are particular cases used on launch vehicles where a secondary rocket engine or other high thrust device is used to control the attitude of the rocket, while the primary thrust engine is fixed to the rocket and supplies the principal amount of thrust.
Advanced Electric Propulsion System (AEPS) is a solar electric propulsion system for spacecraft that is being designed, developed and tested by NASA and Aerojet Rocketdyne for large-scale science missions and cargo transportation. The first application of the AEPS is to propel the Power and Propulsion Element (PPE) of Gateway, to be launched in 2024. The PPE module is built by Maxar space solutions in Palo Alto, California. Two identical AEPS engines would consume 25 kW being generated by the roll-out solar array (ROSA) assembly, which can produce over 60 kW of power.
References
- ↑ Erwin, Sandra (June 24, 2021). "Satellite propulsion supplier Orbion raises $20 million in Series B funding". SpaceNews. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
- ↑ "Company ⋆ Orbion". Orbion. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
- ↑ "Company ⋆ Orbion". Orbion. Retrieved February 6, 2023.
- ↑ "Richard and Elizabeth Henes Endowed Professors Announced". Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics News. July 19, 2021. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
- ↑ "Michigan Tech Mechanical Engineering News". www.me.mtu.edu. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
- ↑ "Ralph R. Teetor Educational Award - Participate - SAE International". www.sae.org. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
- ↑ "L. Brad King | ME-EM | Michigan Tech". www.mtu.edu. Retrieved February 13, 2023.
- ↑ "Lyon Bradley King Inventions, Patents and Patent Applications - Justia Patents Search". patents.justia.com. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
- ↑ Terhune, Kurt J; King, Lyon B; He, Kai; Cumings, John (August 4, 2016). "Radiation-induced solidification of ionic liquid under extreme electric field". Nanotechnology. 27 (37): 375701. Bibcode:2016Nanot..27K5701T. doi:10.1088/0957-4484/27/37/375701. ISSN 0957-4484. PMID 27487731. S2CID 3519545.
- ↑ Hopkins, Mark A.; King, Lyon B. (July 1, 2016). "Performance Comparison Between a Magnesium- and Xenon-Fueled 2 Kilowatt Hall Thruster". Journal of Propulsion and Power. 32 (4): 1015–1021. doi:10.2514/1.B35731.
- ↑ Jackson, Brandon A.; Terhune, Kurt J.; King, Lyon B. (June 1, 2017). "Ionic liquid ferrofluid interface deformation and spray onset under electric and magnetic stresses". Physics of Fluids. 29 (6): 064105. Bibcode:2017PhFl...29f4105J. doi: 10.1063/1.4985141 . ISSN 1070-6631.
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