Photo by Fred Rick Laboratory scientists recently finished testing their part of a space instrument designed to give a better understanding of the compositions of comets and asteroids, and delivered the instrument for eventual integration with the NASA spacecraft. Deep Space One mission. The primary role of the mission is to validate new technologies that will allow NASA to better conduct future science missions. PEPE combines two spectrometers into one package. Together, the measurements give scientists a better understanding of the state and composition of plasma the spacecraft encounters.
PEPE is so versatile that it can be used almost anywhere in our solar system.
It can analyze everything from comet and asteroid composition to the compositions of planetary bodies and moons. The Deep Space One mission also will determine if the spacecraft's innovative ion propulsion system will have any adverse affects on the instruments' ability to make space physics measurements. Ion thrusters allow spacecraft to go as much as ten times faster than spacecraft using chemical thrusters. Ion propulsion systems typically are used by communications companies to reposition their communications satellites in orbit, but until now never have been used for any extended space flight. The force of the ion propulsion system that will be used on Deep Space One is so small that the push it gives the spacecraft is analogous to the weight of a single piece of notebook paper resting in a person's hand.