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Mars Curiosity Power System
I found a web page that said it uses Plutonium. I am sure it's not based on fusion or fission. What is the basic idea on which the power plant works?
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2A recent question answered this: http://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/34203/mars-curiosity-power-system – Michael Luciuk Sep 05 '12 at 00:00
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Curiosity uses a radioisotope thermoelectric generator.
A radioisotope thermoelectric generator (RTG, RITEG) is an electrical generator that obtains its power from radioactive decay. In such a device, the heat released by the decay of a suitable radioactive material is converted into electricity by the Seebeck effect using an array of thermocouples.
Alfred Centauri
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