The most powerful electric thruster currently operating on a NASA spacecraft draws about 4.5 kilowatts as it pushes Psyche toward a metal-rich asteroid. In February 2026, JPL fired a different lithium-fed prototype at 120 kilowatts—more than 25 times the input power—and engineers now want to scale a single thruster to one megawatt.
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Psyche's current thruster draws about 4.5 kilowatts, but in February 2026 JPL fired a lithium-fed prototype MPD thruster five times at up to 120 kilowatts, more than 25 times that input power. Engineers now aim to scale a single thruster to one megawatt.
JPL fired a lithium-fed MPD thruster five times at up to 120 kilowatts. Reaching one megawatt will require far more than multiplying the input power. The post The most powerful electric thruster currently operating on a NASA spacecraft draws about 4.5 kilowatts as it pushes Psyche toward a metal-rich asteroid. In February 2026, JPL fired a different lithium-fed prototype at 120 kilowatts—more than 25 times the input power—and engineers now want to scale a single thruster to one megawatt. appeared first on Space Daily .
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