Aerojet, a subsidiary of Gencorp Inc., received a contract from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to develop an electric propulsion system for cargo transport vehicles, Aerojet announced.
Under the contract from NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission directorate, Aerojet will lead the design and manufacture of a 600-kilowatt (kW) Hall thruster for use on vehicles that will carry cargo to the moon and Mars. The new thruster is intended to provide more power than current systems while using about one-third the amount of propellant.
The new propulsion system will be based on a design from NASA’s Glenn Research Center for a 150 kW Hall thruster and will include four thrusters, four power processors, a xenon propellant feed system and a thermal management subsystem. Lockheed Martin Missiles and Space and Colorado Power Electronics Inc. also will work on the development program.
The contract, which consists of a 12-month first phase and a three-year second phase ending with a full-power test, is valued at $32.4 million if NASA exercises all options
