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The space weather x-ray spectrometer for the Helianthus sub-L1 mission with solar photonic propulsion
Helianthus is a phase A study of a space weather station with solar photonic propulsion. The scientific payload
will be made of: an X-ray spectrometer to detect solar flares; SailCor, a coronagraph with a wide field of view; a
plasma analyzer; a magnetometer. The maximum allowed mass for the entire scientific payload shall not exceed
5 kg. The two imaging devices (coronagraph and X-ray spectrometer) are of fundamental importance for the
sake of remotely and timely mapping the status of the Sun and provide Earth stations with early warning of
potentially disruptive events.
An extensive research on available X-Ray detectors was performed and the Amptek FAST-SDD spectrometer
was selected. It is a very light, compact and vacuum compatible instrument. In order to prove the device
readiness for flight, a measurement campaign was organized to investigate its performance in terms of spectral
range, spectral resolution, dynamic range and response speed. The campaign was run at the INAF XACT facility
in Palermo (Italy). This paper describes the facility, the measurement campaign and the results