Table of Methods
Below is a summary of some of the more popular, proven technologies, followed by increasingly speculative methods.
Four numbers are shown. The first is the effective exhaust velocity: the equivalent speed that the propellant leaves the vehicle. This is not necessarily the most important characteristic of the propulsion method; thrust and power consumption and other factors can be. However:
- if the delta-v is much more than the exhaust velocity, then exorbitant amounts of fuel are necessary (see the section on calculations, above)
- if it is much more than the delta-v, then, proportionally more energy is needed; if the power is limited, as with solar energy, this means that the journey takes a proportionally longer time
The second and third are the typical amounts of thrust and the typical burn times of the method. Outside a gravitational potential small amounts of thrust applied over a long period will give the same effect as large amounts of thrust over a short period. (This result does not apply when the object is significantly influenced by gravity.)
The fourth is the maximum delta-v this technique can give (without staging). For rocket-like propulsion systems this is a function of mass fraction and exhaust velocity. Mass fraction for rocket-like systems is usually limited by propulsion system weight and tankage weight. For a system to achieve this limit, typically the payload may need to be a negligible percentage of the vehicle, and so the practical limit on some systems can be much lower.
| Method | Effective Exhaust Velocity (km/s) |
Thrust (N) |
Firing Duration |
Maximum Delta-v (km/s) |
Technology readiness level |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Solid-fuel rocket | 7001600000000000000minutes | 7000700000000000000~ 7 | 70009000000000000009:Flight proven | ||
| Hybrid rocket | 7001600000000000000minutes | 7000300000000000000> 3 | 70009000000000000009:Flight proven | ||
| Monopropellant rocket | 70002000000000000001 – 3 | 70003162277660168400.1 – 100 | 7000100000000000000milliseconds-minutes | 7000300000000000000~ 3 | 70009000000000000009:Flight proven |
| Liquid-fuel rocket | 7001600000000000000minutes | 7000900000000000000~ 9 | 70009000000000000009:Flight proven | ||
| Electrostatic ion thruster | 700211250000000000015 – 210 | 7006910989442748929months/years | 7002100000000000000> 100 | 70009000000000000009:Flight proven | |
| Hall effect thruster (HET) | 70012900000000000008 - 50 | 7006910989442748929months/years | 7002100000000000000> 100 | 70009000000000000009:Flight proven | |
| Resistojet rocket | 70004000000000000002 - 6 | 699931622776601684010−2 - 10 | 7001600000000000000minutes | ? | 70008000000000000008:Flight qualified |
| Arcjet rocket | 70011000000000000004 - 16 | 699931622776601684010−2 - 10 | 7001600000000000000minutes | ? | 70008000000000000008:Flight qualified |
| Field Emission Electric Propulsion (FEEP) | 7002115000000000000100-130 | 699531622776601684010−6-10−3 | 7006910989442748929months/years | ? | 70008000000000000008:Flight qualified |
| Pulsed plasma thruster (PPT) | 7001200000000000000~ 20 | 6999100000000000000~ 0.1 | 7007160996894379980~2,000–10,000 hours | ? | 70007000000000000007:Prototype demoed in space |
| Dual mode propulsion rocket | 70002850000000000001 – 4.7 | 70031000000000000000.1 – 107 | 7000100000000000000milliseconds-minutes | 7000600000000000000~ 3 – 9 | 70007000000000000007:Prototype demoed in space |
| Solar sails | 299790:Light 145–750:Wind |
70009000000000000009/km2 @ 1 AU 230/km2@0.2AU 10−10/km2@4 ly |
indefinite | 7001400000000000000> 40 | 70006667000000000009:Light pressure attitude-control flight proven 6:Deploy-only demoed in space 5:Light-sail validated in lit vacuum |
| Tripropellant rocket | 70003900000000000002.5 - 5.3 | 70031000000000000000.1 - 107 | 7001600000000000000minutes | 7000900000000000000~ 9 | 70006000000000000006:Prototype demoed on ground |
| Magnetoplasmadynamic thruster (MPD) | 700160000000000000020 - 100 | 7002100000000000000100 | 7005604800000000000weeks | ? | 70006000000000000006:Model-1 kW demoed in space |
| Nuclear thermal rocket | 70009000000000000009 | 7007100000000000000107 | 7001600000000000000minutes | 7001200000000000000> ~ 20 | 70006000000000000006:Prototype demoed on ground |
| Mass drivers (for propulsion) | 70011500000000000000 - ~30 | 7006100000000000000104 - 108 | 7006267840000000000months | ? | 70006000000000000006:Model-32MJ demoed on ground |
| Tether propulsion | N/A | 70061000000000000001 - 1012 | 7001600000000000000minutes | 7000700000000000000~ 7 | 70006000000000000006:Model-31.7 km demoed in space |
| Air-augmented rocket | 70005500000000000005 - 6 | 70031000000000000000.1 - 107 | 7000774596669241480seconds-minutes | 7000700000000000000> 7? | 70006000000000000006:Prototype demoed on ground |
| Liquid air cycle engine | 70004500000000000004.5 | 7005100000000000000103 - 107 | 7000774596669241480seconds-minutes | ? | 70006000000000000006:Prototype demoed on ground |
| Pulsed inductive thruster (PIT) | 700145000000000000010-80 | 700120000000000000020 | 7006267840000000000months | ? | 70005000000000000005:Component validated in vacuum |
| Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket (VASIMR) | 700215500000000000010 - 300 | 700262000000000000040 - 1,200 | 7005481054840948510days - months | 7002100000000000000> 100 | 70005000000000000005:Component-200 kW validated in vacuum |
| Magnetic field oscillating amplified thruster | 700170000000000000010 - 130 | 69993162277660168400.1 - 1 | 7005481054840948510days - months | 7002100000000000000> 100 | 70005000000000000005:Component validated in vacuum |
| Solar thermal rocket | 70009500000000000007 - 12 | 70011000000000000001 - 100 | 7005604800000000000weeks | 7001200000000000000> ~ 20 | 70004000000000000004:Component validated in lab |
| Radioisotope rocket | 70007500000000000007 - 8 | 70001400000000999991.3 - 1.5 | 7006267840000000000months | ? | 70004000000000000004:Component validated in lab |
| Nuclear electric rocket(As electric prop. method used) | Variable | Variable | Variable | ? | 70004000000000000004:Component-400kW validated in lab |
| Orion Project (Near term nuclear pulse propulsion) | 700160000000000000020 - 100 | 7010316227766016840109 - 1012 | 7005604800000000000several days | 7001450000000000000~30-60 | 70003000000000000003:Validated-900 kg proof-of-concept |
| Space elevator | N/A | N/A | indefinite | 7001120000000000000> 12 | 70003000000000000003:Validated proof-of-concept |
| Reaction Engines SABRE | 700117250000000000030/4.5 | 70031000000000000000.1 - 107 | 7001600000000000000minutes | 70009400000000000009.4 | 70003000000000000003:Validated proof-of-concept |
| Magnetic sails | 7002447500000000000145-750:Wind | 700170000000000000070/40Mg | indefinite | ? | 70003000000000000003:Validated proof-of-concept |
| Magnetic sail#Mini-magnetospheric plasma propulsion | 7002200000000000000200 | 7002400000000000000~1 N/kW | 7006267840000000000months | ? | 70003000000000000003:Validated proof-of-concept |
| Beam-powered/Laser(As prop. method powered by beam) | Variable | Variable | Variable | ? | 70003000000000000003:Validated-71m proof-of-concept |
| Launch loop/Orbital ring | N/A | 7004100000000000000~104 | 7001600000000000000minutes | 7001205000000000000>>11-30 | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Nuclear pulse propulsion (Project Daedalus' drive) | 700251000000000000020 - 1,000 | 7010316227766016840109 - 1012 | 7007315576000000000years | 7004150000000000000~15,000 | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Gas core reactor rocket | 700115000000000000010 - 20 | 7004316227766016840103 - 106 | ? | ? | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Nuclear salt-water rocket | 7002100000000000000100 | 7005100000000000000103 - 107 | 7003180000000000000half hour | ? | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Fission sail | ? | ? | ? | ? | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Fission-fragment rocket | 700415000000000000015,000 | ? | ? | ? | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Nuclear photonic rocket | 7005299790000000000299,790 | 699731622776601684010−5 - 1 | 7007997938934885300years-decades | ? | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Fusion rocket | 7002550000000000000100 - 1,000 | ? | ? | ? | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Antimatter catalyzed nuclear pulse propulsion | 7003210000000000000200 - 4,000 | ? | 7005228592913275980days-weeks | ? | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Antimatter rocket | 700455000000000000010,000-100,000 | ? | ? | ? | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Bussard ramjet | 70041000110000000002.2 - 20,000 | ? | indefinite | 7004300000000000000~30,000 | 70002000000000000002:Technology concept formulated |
| Gravitoelectromagnetic toroidal launchers | 7005299790000000000299,790:GEM | ? | ? | 7005299790000000000<299790 | 70001000000000000001:Basic principles observed & reported |
| Method | Effective Exhaust Velocity (km/s) |
Thrust (N) |
Firing Duration |
Maximum Delta-v (km/s) |
Technology readiness level |
Read more about this topic: Spacecraft Propulsion
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