01. What kind of fuel will be used to propel us into outer space? (A K2S Question)

From The Space Library

It seems probable that the chemical rockets we have used for many years will not be suitable for travel to outer space. They are too heavy and bulky. It seems likely that some sort of electrical propulsion will be used. In general, the propellants are heated, controlled, and expelled through a nozzle. They may be simply heated and expelled, or ionized and expelled, or converted into plasma and expelled. Propellants may include hydrogen, deuterium, helium, nitrogen, argon, and xenon. But electrical propulsion requires great amounts of electrical power, and this must be produced somehow on board the spacecraft.

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Answer provided by Jon H. Brown

Question and Answer extracted from the book Kids to Space - by Lonnie Schorer

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