Finally, after a long anticipated wait, the completed AIS-gPPT3-1C V4 pulsed plasma thruster module assembly is complete! The boards arrived just a few days ago, and I couldn’t be more thrilled about the new OshPark After Dark boards. They are just absolutely stunning in real life, and really brings this system to the next level of finish!
Assembly of the thruster was pretty straightforward, and much quicker than previous versions due to the simplification of the circuit, with overall less components and better layout. The gPPT3 thruster stack was de-soldered from the V3 board and attached to the new V4 board for continued testing.
The goal will be to attempt first ignition testing within the next day or two, so hopefully we will have some exciting new results soon!