An Electrical Discharge Drive is a type of propulsion system that uses electrical energy to ionize and accelerate a propellant, creating thrust and propelling a spacecraft or vehicle.
An Electrical Discharge Drive works by ionizing a propellant gas, such as xenon, through electrical energy, and then accelerating the ions using an electric field. The ions are then expelled at high speeds out of the back of the spacecraft, creating thrust in the opposite direction and propelling the spacecraft forward.
Electrical Discharge Drives have several benefits over traditional chemical propulsion systems, including higher efficiency, lower fuel consumption, and the ability to achieve higher speeds. They also have longer lifetimes and require less maintenance compared to other propulsion systems.
One of the main limitations of an Electrical Discharge Drive is its low thrust, which makes it unsuitable for launching spacecraft into orbit. It also requires a large power source, making it more suitable for deep space missions rather than short-distance travel.
Some examples of spacecraft that use an Electrical Discharge Drive include NASA's Dawn spacecraft, which used an ion engine to explore the asteroid belt and the dwarf planet Ceres. The European Space Agency's BepiColombo mission to Mercury also uses an Electrical Discharge Drive for its journey. Other spacecraft, such as Japan's Hayabusa2 and NASA's New Horizons, also use similar propulsion systems.