Momentus Vigoride-5 Status Update #2
by Staff Writers
San Jose CA (SPX) Feb 08, 2023
Momentus Inc. (NASDAQ: MNTS), a U.S. commercial space company reports that its Vigoride-5 Orbital Service Vehicle launched on the SpaceX Transporter-6 mission on January 3 continues to be in good health and that the team is continuing to fully commission the vehicle in preparation for further on-orbit operations.

Recent activities have focused on tuning the performance of the attitude determination system and beginning pressurization of the vehicle's propulsion system. The vehicle's power and temperatures continue to be within the nominal expected ranges.

The Vigoride OSV is designed to support a range of transportation and in-space infrastructure services. A key part of the Vigoride spacecraft is the Microwave Electrothermal Thruster (MET) that is designed to use water as a propellant. The MET is designed to produce thrust by expelling extremely hot gases through a rocket nozzle.

Unlike a conventional chemical rocket engine, which creates thrust through a chemical reaction, the MET is designed to create a plasma and thrust using microwave energy. Using the MET, Momentus aims to offer cost-effective, efficient, safe, and environmentally friendly propulsion to meet the demands for in-space transportation and infrastructure services.

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