Propulsion method
Electric Propulsion
A family of thrusters that accelerate propellant using electrical energy rather than combustion, reaching exhaust velocities several times higher than chemical rockets. The trade is thrust: forces are gentle — millinewtons to newtons — so electric propulsion excels at station-keeping and patient deep-space cruises, as NASA's Dawn demonstrated in reaching both Vesta and Ceres.
Highlights
- ›High exhaust velocity, gentle thrust — ideal for deep-space cruise
Hardware & related concepts
Across space engineering
Knowledge connections
- Associated withSpecific Impulse
- Associated withIon Thruster
- Associated withHall-Effect Thruster
- Associated withNuclear Electric Propulsion
- Associated withVASIMR
- Associated withArcjet Thruster
- Associated withResistojet Thruster
- Associated withStation-Keeping
Sources
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- NASANational Aeronautics and Space Administration
Mission data, planetary science, space telescopes, and public-domain imagery.
Most NASA-produced imagery is in the public domain; individual items are checked for usage terms before publication.