NASA engineers at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama have completed a series of environmental and physical tests on a CubeSat that features a dual‑mode propulsion system.
The new design merges a high‑thrust chemical burst mode for rapid orbit changes with a low‑thrust electric thruster mode for precise attitude control, all within a single compact unit.
During the test campaign the propulsion module underwent vibration, thermal‑vacuum and electromagnetic compatibility examinations to confirm it can survive launch stresses and operate in the space environment.
Preliminary results indicate the system meets performance goals while lowering mass and complexity compared with traditional small‑sat propulsion, suggesting a path toward more capable CubeSats for Earth observation, science and deep‑space missions.