Review on thermal and mechanical challenges in the development of deployable space optics

Villalba, Vı́ctor M.; Kuiper, Hans; Gill, Eberhard

doi:10.1117/1.jatis.6.1.010902

Cited by 27 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 90 publications

(122 reference statements)

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“…However, transposing this technology to nanosats represents a major innovation. The mechanical repeatability that deployable structures can achieve is typically of the order of a few microns [1,3]. To take full advantage of a large deployable aperture and reach the highest possible resolution, optical surfaces need to be aligned to approx.…”

Section: General Conceptmentioning

confidence: 99%

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High-resolution deployable CubeSat prototype

Schwartz

Brzozowski

Milanova

et al. 2020

Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2020: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave

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The volume available on-board small satellites limit the optical aperture to a few centimetres, which limits the Ground-Sampling Distance (GSD) in the visible to approximately 3 m at 500 km. We present the latest development of a laboratory demonstrator for a deployable telescope that will triple the achievable ground resolution and quadruple the photometric capability from a CubeSat imager.In this paper, we present the overall opto-mechanical design of a Cassegrain telescope with a segmented primary mirror with a 30 cm baseline. The segments are folded for launch and unfold in space. To enable diffraction-limited imaging, piston, tip, and tilt (PTT) on each of the mirror segments should be below 12 nm RMS. The key challenge is to ensure phasing, and this precision level will require an active phasing stage.We present laboratory results of deployment and active phasing of the primary mirror segments. The initial deployment is performed using shaped memory alloy that deploy mirror segments. We demonstrate a repeatability below ±4.5 µm, enabling the four PSFs (one for each mirror segment) to be imaged on the detector simultaneously. An alignment step using compact and calibrated capacitive sensors allows for a control of the mirror positions in PTT below the wavelength. Finally, we investigate the sensitivity of misalignments of a deployable secondary mirror and show that it is well within reach of the technology developed in this study.

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Section: General Conceptmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…several microns), and their resolution smaller than the allowable errors (i.e. tens of nm) [3]. The control feedback loop is provided by dedicated on board algorithms.…”

Section: General Conceptmentioning

confidence: 99%

High-resolution deployable CubeSat prototype

Schwartz

Brzozowski

Milanova

et al. 2020

Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2020: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave

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“…Examples are mission concepts such as LUVOIR, HabEx, Galaxy Evolution Probe, and the X-Ray Observatories [4] [5,6] [7]. These and many other present and future space concepts [8] introduce new challenges in mirror technologies, from the optical design, to the substrate and the coatings. Mirrors are critical components in space telescopes, which are extensively used for the observations of Earth and astronomical objects.…”

Section: Mirror Technologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The thermal expansion of ceramic, silicon and SiC optical substrate materials was also investigated in regard to Herschel (2009-2013) observatory [15]. In particular, SiC is one of the most investigated materials for an observatory in cryogenic environment [71][72] [8,69] [73].…”

Section: Thermal Processesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mirrors for Space Telescopes: Degradation Issues

Garoli¹,

Marcos²,

Larruquert³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Mirrors are a subset of optical components essential for the success of current and future space missions. Most of the telescopes for space programs ranging from Earth Observation to Astrophysics and covering the whole electromagnetic spectrum from X-rays to Far-Infrared are based on reflective optics. Mirrors operate in diverse and harsh environments that range from Low-Earth Orbit, to interplanetary orbits and the deep space. The operational life of space observatories spans from minutes (sounding rockets) to decades (large observatories), and the performance of the mirrors within the mission lifetime is susceptible to degrade, which results in a drop of the instrument throughput, which in turn affects the scientific return. Therefore, the knowledge of potential degradation mechanisms, how they affect mirror performance, and how to prevent them is of paramount importance to ensure the long-term success of space telescopes. In this review we report an overview on current mirror technology for space missions with a focus on the importance of degradation and radiation resistance of the coating materials. A special attention will be given to degradation effects on mirrors for the far and extreme UV as in these ranges the degradation is enhanced by the strong absorption of most contaminants.

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“…This was implemented for the Keck telescopes 1 on the ground, or the soonto-be-launched James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), 2 and it prevails in the design of the future extremely large optical telescope projects. 3,4 For other projects, 5 the goal is to minimize the volume at launch.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cophasing multiple aperture telescopes with linearized analytic phase diversity

Vievard

Bonnefois

Cassaing

et al. 2020

J. Astron. Telesc. Instrum. Syst.

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Focal plane wavefront sensing is an appealing technique to cophase multiple aperture telescopes. Phase diversity, operable with any aperture configuration or source extension, generally suffers from high computing load. In this Letter, we introduce, characterize and experimentally validate the LAPD algorithm, based on a fast linearized phase diversity algorithm We demonstrate that a typical performance of λ/75 RMS wavefront error can be reached.

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Review on thermal and mechanical challenges in the development of deployable space optics

Cited by 27 publications

References 90 publications

High-resolution deployable CubeSat prototype

High-resolution deployable CubeSat prototype

Mirrors for Space Telescopes: Degradation Issues

Cophasing multiple aperture telescopes with linearized analytic phase diversity

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