Air Breathing Satellites in Very Low Earth Orbit

[catdlr]

Is it really possible to build satellites that use the air in very low Earth orbit as fuel for their thrusters?

[Asteroza]

Please see the existing VLEO air breather threads for a rough current state of the art. I suspect by 2030 or so we will see a demo flight of a solar electric ABEP VLEO demonstrator by either the EU, the USA, or China.

From the early nuclear arcjet PROFAC, hypersonic ABEP for VLEO has been one of the far dreams for spaceflight. It unlocks very high resolution optical earth observation, easier LEO access, a substantial reduction in propellant delivery from the ground, and the potential for substantial harvesting of nitrogen/oxygen/argon as a propellant supply for the cislunar space industrial ecosystem.

Also: Skeyeon VLEO earth observation

Albedo Space

DARPA Daedalus VLEO program

Project Geovysota

[added links:  Tony]