The dynamics and control of the CubeSail mission: A solar sailing demonstration

Abstract

The proposed study addresses two issues related to the slow emergence of solar sailing as a viable space propulsion method. The low technology readiness level and complications related to stowage, deployment, and support of the sail structure are both addressed by combining the CU Aerospace and University of Illinois-developed UltraSail and CubeSat expertise to design a small-scale solar sail deployment and propulsion experiment in low Earth orbit. The study analyzes multiple aspects of the problem from initial sizing and packaging of the solar sail film into two CubeSat-class spacecraft, through on-orbit deployment dynamics, attitude control of large and flexible space structure, and predictions of performance and orbital maneuvering capability.iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Developments of attitude determination and control system of microsats: A survey

“…The idea of using solar sail for space travel came out at about 100 years ago, while technical hurdles such as the material and deployment method obstructed further developments. Situation changed at the beginning of the 21st century, and several demonstration missions were successfully conducted to investigate the viability of certain deployable solar sails including IKAROS (Interplanetary Kite-Craft Accelerated by Radiation of the Sun) 88 in May 2010, NanoSail-D2 89 in November 2010, Lightsail-1 90 in May 2015, and Lightsail-2 in June 2019, despite the failed, canceled, or on-going missions including Nanosail-D, 91 Sunjammer, 92,93 Cubesail, 94,95 and Near-Earth Asteroid Scout (NEA Scout). [96][97][98] The IKAROS, as the first on-orbit deployed solar sail, had a huge square sail at about 20 m in diagonal line.…”

A review of MEMS micropropulsion technologies for CubeSats and PocketQubes

“…This paper reviews the recent development on the micropropulsion systems that can be manufactured using MEMS (micro electro-mechanical systems) technologies since it is key towards miniaturization, although other promising alternatives are also available, such as solar sail systems [9][10][11] . Only a few CubeSats have been launched to demonstrate the use of this technology [12].…”

Design of the Electrical Power System for the ESTCube-1 Satellite

“…Low cost also makes these platforms ideal for educating spacecraft engineers. CubeSats are promising solutions for many space research and educational projects − from solar sails [2,3] to the Earth observation hyperspectral imaging [4] and tether experiments [5].…”