Motivations
Due to their distance from the Sun, spacecraft exploring the outer planets are severely limited in that they cannot use solar power as a source of electrical energy for onboard instrumentation or for ion propulsion systems. Previous missions to the outer planets such as Voyager and Galileo probe have relied on radioisotope thermoelectric generators (RTG's) as their primary power source. Unlike RTG's which rely on heat produced by the natural decay of radioactive isotopes, Project Prometheus called for the use of a small nuclear reactor as the primary power source.
The primary advantages of this would have been:
- Increased power generation compared to RTGs, allowing scientists and engineers more flexibility in both mission design and operations.
- Increased spacecraft longevity.
- Increased range and propulsion power.
Read more about this topic: Project Prometheus
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