Reaction wheels compared: 39 models

Reaction wheels and control moment gyroscopes store angular momentum to turn a spacecraft without spending propellant. Momentum capacity is the figure of merit; mass and power are what it costs the bus.

Figures are taken from manufacturer datasheets and product pages, normalised to common units. Every row links to the product page and, where available, to the datasheet itself. As of 2026-08-13.

39
models listed
15
manufacturers
2.7 kg
median mass (0.021–50 kg, 35 values)
3.75 W
median power (0.25–168 W, 30 values)
Model Manufacturer Mass, kg Power, W Voltage, V Max dim., mm Momentum Datasheet
AAC Clyde Space RW210 Reaction Wheel AAC Clyde Space 0.021 0.8 3.3–3.5 — — PDF
Reaction Wheel RW1 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 0.024 0.25 5 21 5.8 E-4 Nms PDF
Reaction wheel ASPINA 0.071 0.6 9–12 138 — —
Reaction Wheel Pyxis Space 0.1 — — 32 5 mNms PDF
Reaction Wheel RW25 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 0.2 2.8 5 50 30 mNms PDF
TensorCMG-10m Tensor Tech (thermal) 0.28 1.92 6–14 56 — —
TensorCMG-10m-S Tensor Tech (thermal) 0.28 1.92 6–14 56 — —
Reaction Wheel RW35 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 0.5 9 18 102 0.1 Nms PDF
CubeSat Reaction Wheels Module SXC-FW4-02 SPUTNIX 0.58 — 5–12 97.5 — —
Reaction Wheel RW100 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 0.8 2 18–34 100 0.4 Nms @ nominal speed PDF
NanoTorque GSW-600 GomSpace 0.94 — — 95 — PDF
VRW-B-02 Reaction Wheel VECTRONIC Aerospace GmbH 1 4.5 9–36 70 — PDF
Reation Wheel RWT150 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 1.3 2.5 18–34 150 1.0 Nms @ nominal speed PDF
Reaction Wheel RW150 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 1.3 2 18–34 150 1.0 Nms PDF
RWA-05 Berlin Space Technologies 1.5 — — 110 — PDF
Trillian-1 AAC Clyde Space 1.5 24 — 135 — PDF
CMG for SmallSats Tensor Tech (thermal) 2.5 10 22–34 120 — —
Reaction Wheel RW250 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 2.7 2.5 23–34 180 4.0 Nms @ nominal speed PDF
Reaction Wheel RWT250 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 3 3 23–34 200 4.0 Nms @ nominal speed PDF
Microsatellite Reaction Wheel SX-SBOX-RWH-50-2.0-01 SPUTNIX 3.2 — 22–34 160 — —
Reaction wheel SPUTNIX 3.2 — 22–34 160 — —
RSI 4-75/60 Momentum and Reaction Wheel Collins Aerospace 3.7 20 — — — PDF
W18 Reaction Wheel Bradford Space 5.2 168 — — — PDF
W18E Reaction Wheel Bradford Space 5.56 168 — — — PDF
Reaction Wheel RW1500 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 6 2.5 22–37 320 25.0 Nms @ nominal speed PDF
Reaction Wheel RW800 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 6 2.5 23–34 250 12.0 Nms PDF
W18ES Reaction Wheel Bradford Space 6.02 168 — — — PDF
W45 Reaction Wheel Bradford Space 6.7 168 — — — PDF
W45E Reaction Wheel Bradford Space 7.45 168 — — — PDF
MicroCMG EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 8 — — 240 8.0 Nms PDF
Reaction Wheel RW3000 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 9 2.5 22–37 370 50.0 Nms @ nominal speed PDF
Reaction Wheel RW6000 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) 12.5 5 23–34 446 100.0 Nms @ nominal speed PDF
Control Moment Gyroscopes Blue Canyon Technologies 13 — — — — PDF
Spacecraft orientation and stabilization system Glavkosmos 50 120 27 — — —
Kinetic Moment Reset System Glavkosmos 50 50 — — — —
HR04, HC7 & HC9 Reaction Wheel Assemblies Honeywell Aerospace — 5 — — — —
Momentum Control Systems Honeywell Aerospace — 120 — — — —
Reaction Wheel Space Inventor ApS — — — — 500 and 1000 Nms variants —
Reaction Wheel RW90 EXA (Astro-und Feinwerktechnik) — 1.8 — 100 0.35 Nms @7800 rpm PDF

A dash means the figure is not published by the manufacturer. For 2 model(s) an extracted value fell outside the plausible range for this class of hardware and is withheld pending manual checking, rather than shown as fact. Download the same table as CSV — free to reuse with attribution (CC BY 4.0).

See also: all reaction wheels in the catalogue · component benchmarks · other comparisons