Past NASA missions to Mars, Jupiter and the outer planets were powered by radioisotope thermal generators (RTG's). Although these devices proved to be reliable, their high cost and highly toxic radioactive heat source has made them far less desirable for future planetary missions. This has resulted in a renewed search for alternate energy sources, some of them being photovoltaics (PV) and thermo-photovoltaics (TPV). Both of these alternate energy sources convert light/thermal energy directly...
Topics: SOLAR WIND, IONS, INNER RADIATION BELT, GEOMAGNETIC TAIL, SATELLITE INSTRUMENTS, MAGNETICALLY...