Electric Propulsion Technology Overview

摘要

Since the 1970s, Electric Propulsion has been used on satellites for station-keeping, orbit-raising, and primary propulsion. It has traditionally had applications for telecommunications and science missions, but increasingly the use of EP is being considered for Earth observation, navigation, and space transportation. More recently, constellations of small satellites (e.g., SpaceWeb) are being designed to use electric thrusters to perform the transfer to the operational orbit and other functions. Thanks to the mass savings made possible by the use of electric propulsion, fewer launchers are needed to place the constellation in orbit, thereby allowing a major cost reduction for the service being offered. The use of EP is also capable of enhancing the services offered by CubeSATs.