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Inside the High-Tech Effort to Keep Satellites Alive
Newser • • general
Key Points:
- Northrop Grumman's mission robotic vehicle (MRV), launched by SpaceX, will spend the next year reaching a geostationary orbit 22,300 miles above Earth to service aging satellites.
- The MRV, about the size of a minivan, will use its robotic arms to attach electric-propelled jetpacks to satellites that are running out of fuel, extending their operational life.
- The spacecraft carried three jetpacks that will independently reach orbit and then be retrieved by the MRV to be installed on satellites in need of propulsion assistance.
- Each jetpack, roughly the size of a washing machine, uses xenon gas thrusters to provide additional thrust, potentially saving satellite operators SES and Optus millions by avoiding costly satellite replacements.
- The mission aims to demonstrate satellite servicing technology that could prolong satellite functionality and reduce space debris by extending the lifespan of existing satellites.
