Probing the Plume

Wrapped in clear brown tape to protect it from the erosion of the exhaust, the probes are measuring the properties of the plasma in the plume to determine how efficiently the Hall Thruster is operating.

Hall thrusters create thrust by ionizing propellant with electrons trapped in a magnetic field at the open end of the thruster and accelerating the ionized propellant with an electric field.

Its ability to yield a higher thrust-to-power ratio is part of why this type of advanced solar electric propulsion will be needed for future human expeditions into deep space, including to Mars.

To learn more about how we test electric propulsion technology, visit the 360D virtual tour of NASA's testing facility.