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Radioisotope Power Systems
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For nearly 50 years, the United States has led the world in the scientific exploration of space. U.S. spacecraft have circled Earth, landed on the Moon and Mars, orbited Jupiter and Saturn, and traveled beyond the orbit of Pluto and out of the ecliptic. These spacecraft have sent back to Earth images and data that have greatly expanded human knowledge, though many important questions remain unanswered. Spacecraft require electrical energy. This energy must be available in the outer reaches of the solar system where sunlight is very faint. It must be available through lunar nights that last for 14 days, through long periods of dark and cold at the higher latitudes on Mars, and in high-radiation fields such as those around Jupiter. Radioisotope power systems (RPSs) are the only available power source that can operate unconstrained in these environments for the long periods of time needed to accomplish many missions, and plutonium-238 (238Pu) is the only practical isotope for fueling them. The success of historic missions such as Viking and Voyager, and more recent missions such as Cassini and New Horizons, clearly show that RPSs—and an assured supply of 238Pu—have been, are now, and will continue to be essential to the U.S. space science and exploration program. Multi-Mission Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generators (MMRTGs) are the only RPS currently available. MMRTGs convert the thermal energy that is released by the natural radioactive decay of 238Pu to electricity using thermocouples. This is a proven, highly reliable technology with no moving parts.
Radioisotope Power Systems Committee, National Research Council - Organizational Body
978-0-309-13857-4
NONE
Leadership
English
2009
1-69
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