NASA's NEXT ion thruster runs five and a half years nonstop to set new record

On Monday, NASA announced that its advanced ion propulsion engine operated for 48,000 hours, or five and a half years – and that’s without stops for fuel or coffee. Developed under NASA's Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) project, the engine now holds the record for the longest test duration of any type of space propulsion system... Continue Reading NASA's NEXT ion thruster runs five and a half years nonstop to set new record

Section: Space

Tags: ion engine, NASA, Spacecraft, World Records

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