: a gas kept under pressure in a bottle or can for expelling the contents when the pressure is released
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
This week, technicians will also take a look at a leak that cropped up during the filling of the rocket’s propellant tanks on Monday and tighten connections in the fuel line that connects to the bottom of the rocket. Kenneth Chang, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Aug. 2022 Once the launch team got into propellant loading, work to fill the large liquid hydrogen tank was stymied by a leak at an 8-inch inlet leading into the tank. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 29 Aug. 2022 On Tuesday, August 16, the SLS rolled out to the launchpad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where engineers will complete their final preparations and hook up power, propellant lines, and other systems.WIRED, 20 Aug. 2022 The launch was originally scheduled for Wednesday night, but that attempt was scrubbed due to a propellant temperature issue.BostonGlobe.com, 2 July 2022 Of the main propellant types in use today, only hydrogen fueled rockets do not emit black carbon, says Maloney. Bruce Dorminey, Forbes, 17 June 2022 The Starship-Super Heavy launch vehicle, seen here during propellant loading tests, stands 400 feet tall and measures 30 feet wide. William Harwood, CBS News, 13 June 2022 In 2012 several billionaire entrepreneurs founded a company called Planetary Resources with the goal of harvesting water from asteroids and selling it as propellant at in-space fuel depots. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 31 May 2022 The technology would allow a craft to travel farther with less propellant than today’s chemical rocket systems. Manasee Wagh, Popular Mechanics, 11 May 2022
Noun
In the past, the space agency had trouble loading the vehicle with the liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen that serve as its propellant. Christian Davenport, Washington Post, 29 Aug. 2022 Backup launch opportunities, based on the ever-changing positions of Earth and the moon, along with the need to replenish spaceport propellant supplies, are available Sept. 2 and 5. William Harwood, CBS News, 16 Aug. 2022 More propellant can mean more range, but at a certain point that becomes dangerous. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 12 Aug. 2022 How long a particular artillery barrel lasts depends on the frequency and intensity of use, the power of the propellant and other factors. David Axe, Forbes, 25 July 2022 However, the significance here is the shift to a fully reusable version, without boosters, and change in propellant from kerosene to methane. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 22 July 2022 However, the benzene came from the propellant that sprays the product out of the can. Chris Smith, BGR, 2 Aug. 2022 Benzene isn’t an ingredient in the sunscreen product, and it is believed that the benzene detected during testing came from the propellant that dispels the sunscreen from its container, per the statement. Maggie O'neill, SELF, 1 Aug. 2022 The review found that the chemical came from the propellant used to spray sunscreen out of the can. Harold Maass, The Week, 1 Aug. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Adjective
borrowed from Latin prōpellent-, prōpellens, present participle of prōpellere "to push or thrust forward, compel to go onward" — more at propel