Swaged coaxial heaters for hollow cathodes are used in ion propulsion systems including in flight Hall thrusters and in the Hall Effect Rocket with Magnetic Shielding (HERMeS) for the Asteroid Redirect Mission. Hollow cathodes have widespread use on spacecraft, on communication satellites, the electrodynamic tether, and space station structure and other space environments that include those of low-earth orbits, sun-synchronous high inclination orbits, and geosynchronous orbits.
The United States Air Force has many missions that would benefit from small, low-cost satellites. Commercial applications include communications and imaging satellites, companions to large satellites to provide surveillance and close-up inspection capabilities, such as to monitor and assure proper deployment of solar panels, antennae and other appendages.
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