Tag: Thrusters
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Phase Four’s Maxwell Propulsion System Achieves Flight Heritage
Phase Four, one of the leaders in advanced radio-frequency thrusters for small satellite propulsion, has announced the successful flight heritage of its next-generation Maxwell propulsion system. This marks a major step in deploying state-of-the-art propulsion technology for small satellites. The advances in the Maxwell propulsion system underscore Phase Four’s commitment to excellence, innovation, and customer-focused…
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Exotrail to Provide Electric Propulsion Systems for Muon Space’s Climate Constellation
Muon Space, a climate satellite company revolutionizing the way Earth is monitored from space, has selected Exotrail, the end-to-end space mobility solutions provider, to supply five of its spaceware electric propulsion systems to propel the next generation of its ESPA-class spacecraft currently in development at Muon Space’s manufacturing facility in Mountain View, California. These units…
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NASA Selects Six Small Businesses to Develop Tech for Orbital Debris and Surface Dust
NASA has selected six U.S. small businesses to receive nearly $20 million in total to advance technologies to address two challenges in space exploration: orbital debris and surface dust. During their contracts, the companies will produce prototypes to be demonstrated or used in spaceflight. The six awards build on the companies’ prior work with NASA’s…
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Pale Blue to Supply Water-Based Propulsion Systems for Yonsei University
Pale Blue, a space tech company focused on innovative propulsion technology has been awarded a new contract with Yonsei University in South Korea to provide the Resistojet (0.5U-sized water vapor) propulsion system for a pair of 6U satellites. The propulsion system will be used to do formation flying for a laser crosslink system between the…
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Benchmark Introduces First-Ever Autopilot For Satellites at SmallSat 2023
With operational small satellite constellations scaling fast, and regulatory controls for sustainability quickly emerging, Benchmark Space Systems has announced the commercial launch of the first-ever driver-assist control system capable of managing highly precise satellite maneuvers and travel through increasingly congested space. The category-defining propulsion solution called SmartAIM (Smart Advanced In-Space Mobility) features an onboard software…
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Phase Four Announces its New Maxwell Block 3 Plasma Propulsion Thruster
Phase Four, the creator of the radio-frequency thruster for satellite propulsion, announced its highly anticipated Maxwell Block 3 turn-key plasma propulsion thruster. The Maxwell Block 3 offers satellite manufacturers performance that exceeds Hall Effect Thrusters when operated with krypton, a first for any electrodeless thruster. Maxwell Block 3’s innovative architecture builds on the flight heritage…
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Impulse Space Announces its Upcoming LEO Express-2 and LEO Express-3 Missions
Impulse Space, one of the leaders in the development of in-space transportation services for the inner solar system announced its LEO Express-2 and LEO Express-3 missions. These two missions will perform in-space services, including payload hosting, last-mile orbital delivery, constellation deployment, low-altitude maneuvers, and controlled atmospheric re-entry. They will be utilizing the same Mira vehicle in…
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ISRO Successfully Conducts Hot Test of Gaganyaan Service Module Propulsion System
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully tested the Gaganyaan Service Module Propulsion System (SMPS) on July 19, 2023, at ISRO Propulsion Complex (IPRC), Mahendragiri. This test involved five liquid apogee motor (LAM) engines with a thrust of 440 N and sixteen reaction control system (RCS) Thrusters with a thrust of 100 N. The Service…
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NASA and Aerojet Rocketdyne Begin Testing on Cutting-Edge Solar Electric Propulsion Thrusters
Engineers from NASA and Aerojet Rocketdyne are beginning qualification testing on the cutting-edge solar electric propulsion (SEP) thrusters that will change the in-space propulsion game. The culmination of this work will see these innovative thrusters fly on Gateway beginning in 2025, making it the most powerful SEP spacecraft ever flown. Gateway is a lunar space…
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Safran and Terran Orbital Sign a MoA for the Production of Satellite Electric Propulsion Systems in USA
Safran Electronics & Defense and Terran Orbital announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Agreement to study and validate the prerequisites for the production of a new generation of electric propulsion systems for satellites in the United States, based on Safran’s PPSX00 plasma thruster. Safran Electronics & Defense, via Safran Spacecraft Propulsion, and Terran…