Vacuum Arc Thruster (VAT) Electric Propulsion System
Hypernova Space Technologies
Solid-metal-propellant vacuum arc electric thruster in 0.5U CubeSat form factor — no xenon, no pressurization, aluminium or steel propellant, in-orbit validated January 2023 on EnduroSat Transporter-6.
Key figurescomparable across the catalogue
- Power
- 100,000 W
- Specific impulse
- 5,000 s
Normalised to common units so this product can be compared with others in its category. The supplier's own wording is below.
As published by the supplier
- Thruster type
- Vacuum Arc Thruster (VAT) — plasma electric propulsion
- Form factor
- 0.5U CubeSat-compatible
- Propellant material
- Solid metal (aluminium or steel)
- Propellant state
- Solid (no pressurization required)
- Propellant safety
- Non-toxic, non-hazardous for launch
- Target platforms
- CubeSats (1U–12U) and larger smallsats
- Mission applications
- Station-keeping, VLEO drag compensation, constellation phasing, collision avoidance, deorbit
- In-orbit heritage
- EnduroSat Platform-2 SharedSat, SpaceX Transporter-6, January 2023
- Fuel variants tested in orbit
- 2 solid metal types
- Future refueling concept
- In-orbit metal replenishment from asteroid/debris sources
- Accelerator selection
- Berkeley SkyDeck, Fit 4 Start (Luxembourg)
- HQ
- Cape Town, South Africa (+ Luxembourg office)
About
Hypernova Space Technologies’ core propulsion product is a vacuum arc thruster (VAT) that ionizes solid conducting metal — typically aluminium or steel — to generate a directed plasma jet that propels the satellite. This approach eliminates the pressure vessels, complex valves, and exotic gas propellants (xenon, krypton) required by conventional electric propulsion systems, resulting in a simpler, safer, and more cost-effective solution for small satellite operators.
The thruster is packaged in a 0.5U CubeSat-compatible form factor, making it directly integrable into 1U–12U CubeSat buses and larger smallsat platforms without major structural modification. The solid-metal fuel is non-toxic and non-pressurized, posing no range safety hazard during launch processing — a significant logistical and regulatory advantage compared to xenon-based electric propulsion or bipropellant chemical systems.
Hypernova’s design philosophy targets Very Low Earth Orbit (VLEO) operations, where atmospheric drag requires continuous compensation to maintain stable orbits. The thruster provides long-duration drag compensation that makes sustained VLEO missions commercially viable for earth observation and remote sensing applications. The company’s future vision includes on-orbit refueling using asteroid-mined metals or repurposed space debris, enabling theoretically unlimited mission duration.
The system’s first orbital demonstration took place in January 2023 aboard EnduroSat’s Platform-2 SharedSat satellite (SpaceX Falcon 9 Transporter-6), where it performed a multi-mode testing campaign across two solid fuel variants. Hypernova describes this as the most powerful vacuum arc thruster system flown in orbit at the time of the mission. The company was selected for the Berkeley SkyDeck and Fit 4 Start accelerator programs and holds IP protecting the thruster design and operational modes.
Documentation
No public datasheet yet — request the datasheet / ICD from the supplier.