Design of a Pico-Satellite for the Monitoring of the Performance of a Thin Film Solar Array

This paper presents an overview of the design and mission of a pico-satellite designed to monitor the performance of a Thin Film Solar Array (TFSA) over a one-week period. TFSA is a solar array technology that allows solar cells to be deposited onto a thin, flexible substrate. This substrate can be easily folded, which allows large solar arrays to collapse into a small space. The Aerospace Corporation has developed a small deployable solar array based on this technology. During this mission, the pico-satellite will deploy the TFSA. Once deployed, the voltage and current generated by the array will be monitored. The majority of the pico-satellite’s subsystems are constructed from off-the-shelf components that have been modified for space flight. These are a Kenwood amateur radio communications system, a Basic-X micro-controller based computer system, and a power system. These components, along with the ability to be launched as a secondary payload help reduce costs. This mission is ideally suited for a pico-size satellite due to its short duration, low power requirements, and lack of pointing requirements. It is hoped that information gathered on this mission will allow larger TFSA’s to be built in the future, enabling them to act as primary power sources for future satellites