"The test involved the largest microwave ion thruster ever built. The use of microwaves for ionization would enable very long-life thrusters for probing the universe," he said.

NASA has conducted the first test of a high-power ion engine that could propel the Jupiter Icy Moons Orbiter (JIMO) planned under the Project Prometheus nuclear-powered spacecraft initiative. The ...

A powerful new ion propulsion system has been successfully ground-tested by NASA. The High Power Electric Propulsion ion engine trial marks the “first measurable milestone” for the ambitious ...

Ion propulsion isn’t powerful enough to launch a rocket from Earth, but they can still reach very high speeds over time. Right now, NASA says Psyche is traveling at 23 miles per second, or about ...

When [Jay Bowles] demoed his first-generation ion thruster on Plasma Channel, the resulting video picked up millions of views and got hobbyists and professionals alike talking. While ionic lifters … ...

In this configuration, the water is atomized via a microwave plasma source and ejected out the back of the propulsion system, similar to a typical ion thruster.

While commercial ion thrusters are good enough for most LEO satellites, these engines only use “10% or less of a small spacecraft’s initial mass in propellant,” according to NASA.

Ion thrusters need a power source and an effective one if they will last more than a decade under thrust. The paper defined an ideal power plan that can output 1 kW per kg of weight.

Pale Blue plans to demonstrate thruster performance in June and October 2025 on flights of D-Orbit’s ION Satellite Carrier. Since 2020, D-ORbit has deployed 105 satellites and hosted 48 payloads ...

The propulsion system for NASA's planned moon-orbiting Gateway space station has been undergoing qualification testing at NASA's Glenn Research Center in Cleveland.