ion engine
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Related to ion engine: plasma engine
ion engine
n.
A rocket engine that develops thrust by expelling ions rather than gaseous combustion products. Also called ion rocket.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
ion engine
n
(Astronautics) a type of rocket engine in which thrust is obtained by the electrostatic acceleration of charged positive ions. Compare plasma engine
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
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Noun | 1. | ion engine - a type of reaction-propulsion engine to propel rockets in space; a stream of positive ions is accelerated to a high velocity by an electric field reaction engine, reaction-propulsion engine - a jet or rocket engine based on a form of aerodynamic propulsion in which the vehicle emits a high-speed stream |
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