It has been believed that Hall thrusters, an efficient kind of electric propulsion widely used in orbit, must be large to produce a lot of thrust. Now, a new study from the University of Michigan suggests that smaller Hall ...
Space Exploration
Jan 24, 2023
4
3819
A research group has demonstrated that spontaneously excited plasma waves may be the solution to a long-associated problem with magnetic nozzle plasma thrusters, turning conventional thinking on its head.
Plasma Physics
Dec 6, 2022
0
439
A Tohoku University researcher has increased the performance of a high-power electrodeless plasma thruster, moving us one step closer to deeper explorations into space.
Space Exploration
Nov 11, 2022
0
475
The James Webb Space Telescope has arrived at its cosmic parking spot a million miles away, bringing it a step closer to its mission to unravel the mysteries of the Universe, NASA said Monday.
Astronomy
Jan 24, 2022
2
244
The growing interest in deep-space exploration has sparked the need for powerful long-lived rocket systems to drive spacecraft through the cosmos. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics ...
Plasma Physics
Dec 22, 2021
0
817
Aerospace engineers at MIT are testing a new concept for a hovering rover that levitates by harnessing the moon's natural charge.
Space Exploration
Dec 21, 2021
1
372
The chemical in moth balls, naphthalene, will be tested in space in a new satellite rocket propulsion system, Bogong, developed at The Australian National University (ANU).
Space Exploration
Dec 8, 2021
0
99
When it comes time for NASA's Psyche spacecraft to power itself through deep space, it'll be more brain than brawn that does the work. Once the stuff of science fiction, the efficient and quiet power of electric propulsion ...
Space Exploration
Sep 20, 2021
1
1057
A new type of rocket thruster that could take humankind to Mars and beyond has been proposed by a physicist at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL).
Plasma Physics
Jan 28, 2021
30
2999
Student-led teams aren't the only ones testing out novel electric propulsion techniques recently. Back in November, a company called Exotrail successfully tested a completely new kind of electric propulsion system in space—a ...
Astronomy
Jan 19, 2021
2
69
