AP Satellite, 'Secures Electric Propulsion Technology'... "Contributes to Reducing Spacecraft Launch Costs"

AP Satellite announced on the 5th that it has achieved successful research results by participating in the Ministry of Science and ICT's Space Pioneer project, specifically in the '200mN-class high-thrust electric system' research and development project.

AP Satellite assembled the KHET-5000-DM, a development model of the 200mN-class Hall thruster it developed, and successfully conducted the first discharge test in a laboratory within KAIST's vacuum facility. The discharge test involved a stable continuous discharge for one hour. Researchers from participating institutions KAIST and KARI attended the test together.

The project, in which AP Satellite participates as the lead research institution, also involves the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) and the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) as the principal research institutions for detailed tasks. The research is scheduled to take a total of 67 months and is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

Through this project, AP Satellite will secure high-thrust and high-reliability electric propulsion technology based on Hall thrusters, replacing the existing chemical propulsion methods. This technology is expected to contribute to reducing the weight of satellite bodies for geostationary communication and observation satellites, increasing payload capacity, and lowering launch costs.

The electric propulsion method developed by AP Satellite in this research reduces the fuel weight, which accounted for 50% of the satellite body weight in chemical propulsion, by approximately 75%. Launch costs can also be reduced by 25 to 50%. This is expected to contribute not only to medium- and large-sized satellite projects but also to future deep space exploration missions.

An AP Satellite official emphasized, "Through this research, we have strengthened our role as a leader in the space technology field and can present new possibilities for future satellite projects," adding, "We will continue to advance as a leading global space industry company through ongoing research and development."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.