Dawn Mission Status: Spacecraft Tests Ion Engine

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Artists concept of Dawn spacecraft. Image credit: NASAJPL
Artist's concept of Dawn spacecraft. Image credit: NASA/JPL

NASA's Dawn spacecraft successfully completed the first test of its ion propulsion system over the weekend. The system is vital to the success of Dawn's 8-year, 1.6 billion-mile (3-billion-kilometer) journey to asteroid Vesta and dwarf planet Ceres.


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