They are only the size of a domestic washing machine but ESA’s mini-satellites are getting some big results.
The SuperDraco engine was developed using a US$75 million grant that NASA's Commercial Crew Program awarded to SpaceX last April. The ground tests were conducted at the company's Rocket Development Facility in McGregor, Texas, where the engine sustained full-duration, full-thrust firing, and performed multiple demonstrations of deep throttling.
