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After the
Ulysses and Galileo RTGs were fueled, their launches were postponed by four and three years respectively. As a result, the missions were slightly adapted to utilize the lower power that would be available. The decay heat reduces by about 0.8% per year, so the thermoelectric converter 'ages'
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The GPHS-RTG has an overall diameter of 0.422 m and a length of 1.14 m. Each GPHS-RTG has a mass of about 57 kg and generates about 300 watts of electrical power at the start of mission (5.2 We/kg), using about 8.1 kg of
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215:, AIAA 2006-4096, 4th International Energy Conversion Engineering Conference and Exhibit (IECEC), 26–29 June 2006, San Diego, California (Accessed 8 September 2010)
127:(later part of Martin-Marietta, subsequently part of Lockheed Martin), in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania. The generators were filled with plutonium by
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255:, AIAA 2006-4187, 4th International Energy Conversion Engineering Conference and Exhibit (IECEC), 26–29 June 2006, San Diego, California
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elements ('Unicouples') which are no longer in production. Missions after 2010 requiring RTGs, such as the
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The thermoelectric elements convert the heat energy from the isotope into electricity. The GPHS-RTG use
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Overview of NASA Program on
Development of Radioisotope Power Systems with High Specific Power
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Mission of Daring: The
General-Purpose Heat Source Radioisotope Thermoelectric Generator
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which produces about 4,400 watts of thermal power. The plutonium oxide fuel is in 18
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New
Horizons, mission ongoing departing Solar System (escape trajectory)
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Ulysses, mission completed 2007 in heliocentric orbit (orbiting the Sun)
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Model of long-lasting electric power source used on NASA space probes
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239:"Development and Use of the Galileo and Ulysses Power Sources"
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although they contain cylindrical plutonium based pellets.
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The GPHS-RTG units used on spacecraft were not created by
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Galileo, mission completed 2003 entry into planet
Jupiter
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Cape
Canaveral Air Force Station Space Launch Complex 41
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Cassini, mission completed 2017 entry into planet Saturn
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226:Space Nuclear Power: Opening the Final Frontier
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72:space missions. The GPHS-RTG was used on
46:Image of a plutonium RTG pellet glowing
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62:— radioisotope thermoelectric generator
66:radioisotope thermoelectric generator
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631:Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter
123:. They were designed and built by
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611:Long Range Reconnaissance Imager
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125:General Electric Space Division
279:Safety of Cassini RTG (Part 3)
274:Safety of Cassini RTG (Part 2)
269:Safety of Cassini RTG (Part 1)
64:, is a specific design of the
23:Diagram of an RTG used on the
1:
704:Southwest Research Institute
143:or degrades to some extent.
689:Goddard Space Flight Center
60:general-purpose heat source
36:general-purpose heat source
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679:Applied Physics Laboratory
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694:Jet Propulsion Laboratory
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155:Mars Science Laboratory
38:modules as used in RTGs
910:Nuclear power in space
856:Hubble Space Telescope
714:University of Colorado
185:Nuclear power in space
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34:Diagram of a stack of
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348:New Frontiers program
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874:Pluto Kuiper Express
334:Exploration of Pluto
129:Department of Energy
709:Stanford University
840:Deep Space Network
137:Idaho Falls, Idaho
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672:Institutions
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396:Observations
341:New Horizons
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316:New Horizons
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861:Kuiper belt
834:launch site
814:upper stage
760:Cathy Olkin
598:Instruments
441:28978 Ixion
436:15810 Arawn
780:Hal Weaver
775:Alan Stern
645:Subsystems
590:Spacecraft
372:132524 APL
191:References
90:(3), and
824:3rd stage
793:Logistics
755:Brian May
745:Marc Buie
665:Personnel
161:instead.
904:Category
891:Category
820:Star 48B
652:GPHS-RTG
518:Rejected
461:Makemake
339:List of
329:Timeline
179:See also
55:GPHS-RTG
849:Related
810:Centaur
800:Atlas V
562:2014 PN
550:2014 OS
538:2014 MT
526:2011 HM
503:2012 HE
425:2011 KW
413:2011 JY
403:Neptune
377:Jupiter
358:Targets
241:. 1994.
210:et al.,
81:Galileo
75:Ulysses
48:red hot
723:People
699:KinetX
616:PEPSSI
451:Haumea
446:Quaoar
407:Triton
365:Flybys
343:topics
114:cuboid
102:Pu-238
84:(2),
621:Ralph
606:Alice
382:Pluto
106:GPHSs
96:(1).
78:(1),
636:SWAP
456:Eris
405:and
148:SiGe
135:and
121:NASA
112:are
110:GPHS
626:REX
553:393
529:102
494:394
57:or
906::
565:70
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506:85
482:84
428:48
416:31
199:^
139:.
70:US
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470:4
307:e
300:t
293:v
50:.
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