You can see the video explaining that, below. To understand why, you need to know two things: how ion drive works and how the engines differ when using them in an atmosphere. Let’s start with a ...

On the face of things, not much, but after seeing [Zachary Tong]’s latest video on liquid metal ion thrusters, we see that they seem to have a lot more in common than we’d initially thought.

Unlike most interplanetary probes, Dawn is not propelled by a chemical rocket engine, but by a solar-electric ion propulsion system, particularly suitable for long-distance flights. This innovative ...

Ion thrusters are the most common primary engine powering satellites through orbital maneuvers today. But to travel from ...