How did mankind evolve from a short 12-second hop to flying at 850 kilometers per hour, at 11000 meters altitude in an almost fully automatic machine that can carry 315 passengers from New York to Bangkok, non-stop? One might be tempted to think that this was a rational, linear and predictable process. Or was it?
Even with the most advanced propulsion technologies, there is a limit on the range of current thrusters. But spacecraft can travel farther, thanks to the gravity assist maneuver…
As we have seen, there is a limit on the ejection speed achievable by chemical propulsion rockets. But electric propulsion can overcome this limitation, reaching ejection speeds in excess of 50 km/s…
Space propulsion systems can fulfill numerous different roles. Depending on them and on the environment they will operate in, there will be a huge difference in priorities in thruster design…