Not Science Fiction: Electric Propulsion Comes of Age With Psyche Mission to an Asteroid:
Psyche's Hall thrusters will be the first to be used beyond lunar orbit, demonstrating that they could play a role in supporting future missions to deep space. The spacecraft is set to launch in August 2022 and its super-efficient mode of propulsion uses solar arrays to capture sunlight that is converted into electricity to power the spacecraft's thrusters. The thrusters work by turning xenon gas, a neutral gas used in car headlights and plasma TVs, into xenon ions. As the xenon ions are accelerated out of the thruster, they create the thrust that will propel the spacecraft.
Belters rejoice.
(Score: 2) by mcgrew on Wednesday November 24 2021, @08:11PM
It doesn't get in to the actual engineering of the thrusters, except they're huge. Mars, Ho! [mcgrewbooks.com] and Voyage to Earth [mcgrewbooks.com] have them. Mars, Ho! is a novel, Voyage is a sequel and part of a collection. Some other stories in that book use ion engines as well. Hope you like 'em!
mcgrewbooks.com mcgrew.info nooze.org