Subjects that will be addressed in the conference cover all areas of electric propulsion (EP), such as: Hall Thrusters, Ion Thrusters, Field Emission and Colloid Thrusters, MPD (magneto-plasma dynamic) Thrusters, Pulsed Plasma Thrusters, Resistojets/Arcjets, Other electrothermal, electromagnetic or electrostatic thruster concepts, Innovative or advanced electric propulsion concepts, Cathode and other component and materials technologies, EP propellant feed systems, Power and power processing for EP systems. On any of the above concepts or systems the topics of interest include but are not limited to: Physics, Fundamental studies, Analytical Modeling, Numerical simulations, Laboratory and Space Testing, Diagnostics, Lifetime Characterization, Mission Analysis, Systems Analysis, Development Application, and In-flight experience.
The future of the research field depends upon attracting bright young people. The IEPC has a strong tradition of encouraging and promoting student participation from all over the world. This award will provide partial travel support for PhD students to attend and present the results of their work at the meeting. Student travel award competition will be announced via the conference web site. Applicants will be asked to send their Abstract and letter of support from the research adviser. Applications will be reviewed by the Technical Committee. Preference will be given to women and underrepresented minorities. Scientific and technological advances will be aided by the interaction among students and the US and foreign participants.
The future of the research field depends upon attracting bright young people. The IEPC has a strong tradition of encouraging and promoting student participation from all over the world. This award provided partial travel support for PhD students to attend and present the results of their work at the meeting. Student travel award competition was announced. Applicants were asked to send their Abstract and letter of support from the research adviser. Applications were reviewed by the Technical Committee. Preference was given to women and underrepresented minorities. The broader impacts of this travel award include the opportunity for young scientists to attend one of the most important conferences in their field. They had the opportunity to observe first-hand the scientific and cultural diversity of the field, and establish what will hopefully be career long collaborations with their international counterparts. The IEPC had a record number of attendees and papers delivered. Despite uncertain government budgets and the ongoing government shutdown, more than 443 people attended the conference, delivering 356 technical papers on solar electric propulsion (SEP), a form of highly efficient spacecraft propulsion in which the propulsion system uses electricity generated by the spacecraft’s solar panels to accelerate the propellant to very high speeds. Papers ranged in subjects from basic research on new technologies for micropropulsion to large scale SEP vehicle concepts for missions such as NASA’s Asteroid Retrieval Mission. George Washington and other university students had the opportunity to meet top minds in the electric propulsion field at one of many events hosted by the university that showcases science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields. Attendees also included academics, government and industry representatives as well as satellite manufacturers and operators, which shows their keen interest in electric propulsion technology. The conference also included a presentation of the Ernst Stuhlinger medal to Hitoshi Kuninaka. Dr. Kuninaka was the principal investor of the Japanese Hayabusa spacecraft, which used ion propulsion to return samples of the asteroid Itokawa to Earth. The Japanese Space Agency (JAXA) built Hayabusa spacecraft to test new technologies and to collect the first samples from the surface of an asteroid. Hayabusa studied and photographed asteroid Itokawa for more than two months. The Hayabusa sample capsule returned to Earth and was recovered. Hayabusa was the first spacecraft to successfully land and take off from the surface of an asteroid.
