MIT’s Dual Fuel Thruster Lets Tiny CubeSats Fly to Mars on a Single Drop of Green Propellant

Cambridge, Massachusetts, MMN Correspondent: What if a satellite the size of a loaf of bread could travel all the way to Mars, using nothing more than a few drops of a safe, stable liquid? That’s exactly what engineers at MIT have just made possible. They’ve created a propulsion system that blends the raw power of chemical rockets with the gentle, long lasting efficiency of electric thrusters, all running on a single green fuel. This isn’t just a tweak to existing tech. It’s a fundamental shift in how we think about small spacecraft and their reach.

For years, tiny satellites called CubeSats have been stuck close to Earth. They could take pictures, monitor weather, or test new electronics, but they couldn’t go far. The reason? Propulsion. Traditional systems required separate fuels for different tasks, adding weight and complexity that these small platforms simply couldn’t afford. That’s where the new fuel, ASCENT, comes in. Originally created by the U.S. Air Force as a safer alternative to the highly toxic hydrazine, ASCENT is an ionic liquid that stays stable even in the vacuum of space. It doesn’t freeze, it doesn’t boil, and it doesn’t poison the people who handle it.

Here’s the clever part. MIT researchers wondered: if ASCENT is an ionic liquid, and the most efficient electric thrusters (called electrospray thrusters) also use ionic liquids, could one fuel do both jobs? They tested it. Inside a vacuum chamber that mimics the conditions of space, they loaded a tiny reservoir with just one gram of ASCENT, about the same as a few drops of baby oil. They mounted the thruster on a CubeSat prototype suspended by magnetic levitation, so no physical contact would interfere with the measurements. Then they turned up the voltage. The satellite began to spin, slowly and steadily, for up to 100 hours straight. The thrust was consistent, controllable, and matched the performance of specialized propellants that cost more and require separate tanks.

This dual mode capability is a big deal. It means a single fuel tank can feed both a chemical thruster for quick bursts of speed and an electrospray thruster for long, fuel sipping journeys. No more separate plumbing, no extra mass, no added complexity. For a CubeSat, where every gram matters, this opens up missions that were previously impossible. Imagine a small satellite that can launch from Earth, use its chemical thruster to escape orbit quickly, then switch to the electric mode to cruise slowly toward Mars over the course of a year. Upon arrival, it could fire the chemical thruster again to adjust its orbit or descend toward the surface. All of this, from a platform that costs a fraction of a traditional planetary probe.

NASA has already taken notice. The agency selected MIT’s design for a real world test called the Green Propulsion Dual Mode mission. A briefcase sized CubeSat, carrying one chemical thruster and four electrospray thrusters, all drawing from a single shared tank of ASCENT, is scheduled to launch in November. If it works, it will be the first time any spacecraft has demonstrated integrated chemical and electric propulsion using a common propellant. That’s a milestone that could set the standard for decades to come.

But the implications go far beyond Mars. With this technology, a fleet of CubeSats could be deployed to monitor a developing hurricane. They could use chemical thrusters to converge on the storm quickly, then switch to electrospray thrusters to hover and collect data with pinpoint precision over weeks. This kind of maneuverability was previously reserved for much larger, more expensive satellites. Now it’s available in a package that fits in your backpack.

Looking further out, the same system could enable missions to the asteroid belt, to Jupiter’s moons, or even to Saturn’s Titan. Small, agile spacecraft could map surface features, analyze atmospheres, or study magnetic fields, all while consuming minimal fuel and requiring no complex refueling infrastructure. The cost of interplanetary science could drop dramatically, making it accessible to universities, startups, and smaller space agencies around the world.

There’s also an environmental angle worth noting. Hydrazine, the old standard, is highly toxic and poses serious risks during handling and launch. ASCENT is non toxic and environmentally benign. It aligns with a broader push toward safer, more sustainable spaceflight. That’s good news for the planet and for the people who build and launch these satellites.

This breakthrough didn’t happen overnight. Professor Paulo Lozano’s lab at MIT has been refining electrospray thrusters since the early 2010s. Their designs have already flown on sounding rockets and international CubeSat deployments. This latest work, led by former postdoctoral researcher Amelia Bruno, represents the culmination of years of incremental progress. It’s a reminder that sometimes the biggest advances come not from entirely new inventions, but from finding elegant connections between existing technologies.

As space agencies and private companies increasingly turn to small satellites for everything from climate monitoring to national security, the demand for versatile, reliable, and affordable propulsion will only grow. MIT’s dual mode approach offers a scalable solution that could become a standard feature in next generation nanosatellites. The upcoming NASA mission will be the true test. If it succeeds, the era of tiny, intelligent, and autonomous explorers reaching distant worlds may have officially begun.