The altitude range between 120 and 300 km is relatively unexplored with regard to space weather, atmospheric models, climate observations, the global electric circuit, remote sensing, and intelligence gathering. This is due to the high magnitudes of drag experienced at these altitude ranges for any size of satellite. Air-breathing electric propulsion systems have been proposed for 50–100 kg satellites as a way to counteract drag at these altitudes. In this paper, a concept for an air-breathing ion thruster is designed for use in 3U, 6U, 12U, and 27U CubeSats. This design focuses on particle capture efficiency via a unique inlet design, the ionization efficiency of atmospheric particles, and then analysis of the thrust, taking into account those efficiencies. This work shows that it is possible to build air-breathing propulsion systems for CubeSats with thrust exceeding the local drag in low-Earth-orbit altitudes.
Conceptual Design of an Air-Breathing Electric Thruster for CubeSat Applications
Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets ; 55 , 3 ; 632-639
2017-12-21
8 pages
Aufsatz (Zeitschrift)
Elektronische Ressource
Englisch
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