Abstract

Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP) has become vital in several commercial space applications and is well positioned to lower the cost and risk of important space exploration and science missions. The success of commercial SEP in the global satellite market provides a production base that produces cost-effective hardware. Well-established commercial approaches are in place for scaling and tailoring SEP systems to US government missions. An evolutionary roadmap is discussed, illustrating how these capabilities have emerged from the privately funded commercial technology branching into two new applications to government exploration missions. One is the adaptation for deep space exploration as illustrated by the NASA Discovery class mission to the main belt asteroid 16 Psyche that will use currently-available commercial SEP technologies with only minor modifications. The second enables the emergence of large scale space transportation as embodied by the Power Propulsion Element (PPE), derived from the Asteroid Redirect Robotic Mission (ARRM) spacecraft concept and planned as the bus foundation of the Deep Space Gateway (DSG). The PPE could use high-power third generation SEP derived from commercial capabilities to transport and maintain large habitats and modules within the Earth-Moon system.

Full Text
Paper version not known

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.