Abstract: Mars Observer (MO) was envisioned to be the first of a series of spacecraft, known as the observer series, which were the early 1980’s version of the “faster, better, cheaper” mantra that was to be adopted by NASA during the following decade. Contact with the MO spacecraft was lost in August 1993, three days before it was to have entered orbit around the planet Mars. Due to the lack of telemetry, it was never possible to determine with certainty what caused the loss of the spacecraft, and review boards were only able to narrow the probable cause of the failure to a handful of credible failure modes. The Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft was designed as a replacement for the failed Mars Observer (MO) mission. The propulsion system was designed and developed in 16 months to meet the aggressive schedule and cost targets. The MGS spacecraft was launched on November 6, 1996. Major propulsion system events were all performed as expected. China will initiate a series of deep space exploration, the reliability and safety of propulsion system is extreme important to the spacecraft. This paper presents an overview of the potential failure modes identified by the JPL review board. The design and flight performance along with some enlightenments is presented herein.

Key words: propulsion system, MGS, engine