A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket has successfully launched the world’s first all-electric satellites, which are lighter than conventional chemical-propulsion satellites and therefore cost less to launch.
The Falcon 9 rocket carrying two all-electric Boeing 702SP satellites was launched at around 10:50 p.m. Sunday.
The satellites were stacked inside the nose cone of the rocket. Unlike other satellites, they do not need a special dual-payload adapter system.
A conventional satellite with similar capabilities weighs more than 8,000 pounds. Since the Boeing 702SP satellite does not have a fuel tank, it weighs about 37 percent less.
The Boeing 702SP satellite uses ion thrusters, which push electrically ionized xenon gas through thrust chambers to propel the spacecraft.
A downside of using ion thrusters is that it will take months instead of weeks for the satellites to reach their operational orbits.
The satellites’ operators, Eutelsat and Asia Broadcast Satellite, each paid less than $30 million for the launch, an incredibly low price for the launch of a communications satellite.
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