Abstract
For over forty years, NASA has relied on plutonium-238 in Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator (RTG) units and Radioisotope Heater Units ( W s ) to provide power and heat for many space missions including Transit, Pioneer, Viking, Voyager, Galileo, Ulysses and Cassini. RHUs provide heat to keep key components warm in extremely cold environments found on planets, moons, or in deep space. RTGs convert heat generated from the radioactive decay of plutonium-238 into electricity using a themocouple, Plutonium-238 has proven to be an excellent heat source far deep space missions because of its high thermal power density, useful lifetime, minimal shielding requirements, and oxide stability.
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