SMILES/AOS: acousto-optic spectrometer for high-resolution submillimeter-wave spectroscopy

Abstract

An Acousto-Optical Spectrometer (AOS) features the submillimeter-wave limb-emission sounder (SMILES) to be aboard the Japanese Experiment Module (JEM) of International space station (155). The Japanese space agency (NASDA) has contracted ASTRIUM for the development of the AOS. Acousto-Optical Spectrometers are well adapted for analyzing in real time with high resolution a wide band and faint signal embedded in radiometric noise. Their usefulness for instantaneous detection and mapping of multi-species emission was first demonstrated in the field of radio astronomy in 1970s and thanks to their compactness and low power consumption, they are highly well adapted to space application. Several technical concerns related to important instrumental characteristics of AOS are discussed and performances are overviewed.

Development of a Molecular Assessment High-Resolution Observation Spectrometer (MAHOS) for Microsatellites

“…It is note that the SWAS on the Odin satellite remains in Earth orbit, but is in standby and not operational. The AOS employed in SMILES, which operates at 625-650 GHz onboard the international space station, has the following specifications: volume of 0.027 m 3 , mass of less than 13.6 kg, and power consumption of 37 W [11]. The AOS employed in SWAS, which operated in spectral regions at approximately 487, 492, 548, 551, and 557 GH on the Odin satellite, had a mass of 7.5 kg and power consumption of 5.5 W with full operation [12]- [13].…”