Hi
I am in college and plan to declare an engineering major.
I am really interested in electric propulsion for whether ground vehicles or spacecrafts. I would like to work with ion or plasma thrusters and any system that will provide electric propulsion from solar arrays.
I guess my question is what are the challenges in ion / plasma thrusters and solar energy ? Are they more linked to mechanical or electrical engineering ? Or even aerospace engineering ?
Which major would provide me with the best skill set to work in this field ?
Its confusing because on a forum about ion thrusters with some NASA engineers most of them were aerospace or mechanical engineers but isn’t electric propulsion as in accelerating ions related to electrical engineering ?
Plus electrical engineering has a field called power engineering but is it only power as in power grid or how to convert electrical power to movement ?
Also so what are the biggest challenges in solar energy related to ? Mechanical ? As in materials ? Thermos etc ? Or electrical for storage and transmission of energy captured ?
Thank you for your answers in advance .
I am in college and plan to declare an engineering major.
I am really interested in electric propulsion for whether ground vehicles or spacecrafts. I would like to work with ion or plasma thrusters and any system that will provide electric propulsion from solar arrays.
I guess my question is what are the challenges in ion / plasma thrusters and solar energy ? Are they more linked to mechanical or electrical engineering ? Or even aerospace engineering ?
Which major would provide me with the best skill set to work in this field ?
Its confusing because on a forum about ion thrusters with some NASA engineers most of them were aerospace or mechanical engineers but isn’t electric propulsion as in accelerating ions related to electrical engineering ?
Plus electrical engineering has a field called power engineering but is it only power as in power grid or how to convert electrical power to movement ?
Also so what are the biggest challenges in solar energy related to ? Mechanical ? As in materials ? Thermos etc ? Or electrical for storage and transmission of energy captured ?
Thank you for your answers in advance .