Doing Rocket Science On A Very Small Scale

But recently engineers have replaced hydrazine, a carcinogen, with concentrated hydrogen peroxide. It's safer to work with, and decomposes into oxygen and water.

Hitt's task is to scale down the hydrogen peroxide thrusters, building them on computer chips with tiny electromechanical components that can be mass produced. Ten or 20 would fit on one three-inch silicon wafer - the perfect size and power for a 20-pound satellite.

"The thrust levels you need to finely tune the position of such a small satellite are dramatically reduced," he said, comparing it to the weight of two or three grains of rice.

Fuel loads are small, too, thanks to tiny flow rates through the handful of thrusters needed for each satellite. "My guess is that all the fuel we'd need for the entire space [mission] duration would probably fit in a coffee cup," he said.

Hitt hopes to do some of the project's micro-machining at the University of Maryland's Center for Integrated Nano Science and Engineering, at College Park.

The work starts "as soon as the money comes in," he said. He hopes to have a working prototype in three to four years.