ion thruster articles
What metric does ion propulsion prioritize over raw power for different mission profiles?
What inert gas is often used as the propellant when generating positively charged ions?
Why must ion thrusters operate in the near-perfect vacuum of space?
What two celestial bodies did the NASA Dawn mission use ion engines to cruise between?
What governing equation determines the maximum delta-v achievable by an electric spacecraft?
What power class are next-generation ion designs targeting beyond the kilowatt levels used by Dawn?
Compared to chemical rockets, what is the typical thrust level of an ion thruster?
What primary engineering hurdle causes failure in long-duration ion drives?
What process adapts ion drive principles to create silent, terrestrial propulsion systems?
Why is Xenon the preferred working fluid due to its physical characteristics?
What force magnitude is used to characterize the minimal thrust of an ion thruster?
For missions venturing to the outer planets, what power source limits ion thruster operation?
What physical process causes erosion in ion thruster electrostatic accelerator grids?
How does the thrust magnitude relate mathematically to specific impulse ($I_{sp}$)?
What characteristic of ion propulsion leads to rigid, non-agile mission planning?
Which material is most commonly utilized as the inert propellant in ion thrusters?
What drawback offsets the mass savings achieved by using highly efficient ion thruster propellant?
Why are ion thrusters often designed to operate below their theoretical maximum power level?
When comparing ion thrusters to Hall effect thrusters, what trade-off typically exists?
What is the practical consequence of the low thrust-to-weight ratio on trajectory correction maneuvers?
What performance metric shows the incredible efficiency of ion thrusters compared to chemical rockets?
What is the single biggest hurdle preventing ion thrusters from being used for tasks like launching a spacecraft from Earth?
What environmental condition is fundamentally required for an ion thruster to operate effectively?
Which statement accurately summarizes the trade-off between chemical rockets and ion thrusters regarding key performance metrics?
What specific long-term orbital task is the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) currently performing using its ion thrusters?
What is the usual propellant material utilized by ion thrusters?
What system typically supplies the substantial electrical power needed for deep-space ion thrusters, like those on the Dawn spacecraft?
Thrust from a typical ion engine is often compared in magnitude to the weight of what common item?
Because ion thrusters deliver low thrust, what characteristic of the spacecraft's movement is severely impacted in the short term?