We have developed a 50kg class microsatellite HIBARI . The mission of this satellite is to demonstrate a novel attitude control method for microsatellites which is called “Variable Shape Attitude Control (VSAC).” VSAC is a method using anti-torque by driving variable shape structures. HIBARI has four drivable solar array paddles, and will demonstrate VSAC.
The development of HIBARI began in 2019, and it was injected into orbit in November 2021 under the Innovative Satellite Technology Demonstration Program led by JAXA. Currently, HIBARI has completed its critical phase and paddle deployment phase, and is conducting paddle drive experiments in orbit. In paddle drive experiments, the paddles are driven according to the command values, and the accompanying attitude change is confirmed. These results indicate that the satellite can generate angular velocities of 4 deg/s or more and achieve the target agile maneuver of 30deg in 10seconds, which is comparable to that of CMG for microsatellite
