JAXA used steam to propel EQUULEUS Spacecraft

EQUULEUS (Equilibrium Lunar-Earth Point 6U Spacecraft), was one of 10 Cubeset that were part of ARTEMIS Mission launched through Space Launched System (SLS). It was designed jointly by JAXA & University of Tokyo.

Importamt Points

• EQUULEUS is a nano satellite that was successfully launched on 16 November 2022 , will help to measure the distribution of plasma surrounds the earth & helps the scientists to understand the radiation environment.
• It will be positioned at Earth-Moon Lagrangian Point L2 (EML2) halo orbit.
• It will demostrate Low Energy Trajectory control technique such as multiple flybys within the Earth – Moon Lagrangian point (EML).
• Equipped with AQUARIUS propulsion system consisting of eight water thruster that uses water as a fuel & uses the waste heat from communication kit to convert water into steam that further provide thrust.
• It carries three scientific payloads which are PHOENIX, DELPHINUS & CLOTH.
• PHOENIX means Plasma-spheric Helium ion Observatory by Enhanced New Image in eXtreme ultraviolet, a small UV telescope that operate in high energy extreme ultraviolet wavelength.
• DELPHINUS means Detection camera for Lunar impact Phenomena IN 6U Spacecraft, camera connected to PHOENIX telescope that will capture the lunar impact flashes, near earth asteroid & mini-moon.
• CLOTH (Cis Lunar Object detecter within Thermal Insulation), will detect the meteoroid impact flux in cis lunar space using dust detector mounted on the spacecraft.

Lagrangian Points

Lagrangian points are specific positions in the space where the gravitational pull of two large masses balance the centripetal force required for a smaller object to move with them and help the spacecraft to remain in static position. There are five Lagrangian points around earth and sun named as L1 to L5.