A technology development program has generated a detail design of a lightweight 25 kW solar array for Solar Electric Propulsion (SEP). The fabrication and test of a full-scale array wing, 32.0 m x 4.06 m, is in progress to demonstrate technology readiness for fabrication, testing and flight of the large area lightweight solar array system. This paper presents the requirements for the 66 W/kg array and the component testing that has been performed to demonstrate technology readiness in the areas of SEP mission environmental survival, zero-gravity flat-fold array retraction, and NDT development testing. A zero-gravity test program was performed in the NASA KC-135 aircraft using a three-panel, full-width segment of the flat-fold array blanket with three degrees of panel stiffening. The full-scale solar array wing being fabricated is composed of three electrical modules, 76 x 200 cm, and mass simulator panels each 76 x 400 cm employing 2 x 4 cm glass slides (4.5 panels) and aluminum mass simulators (35 panels).


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    Title :

    SEP full-scale wing technology development


    Contributors:

    Conference:

    Intersociety Energy Conversion Engineering Conference ; 1977 ; Washington, DC


    Publication date :

    1977-01-01


    Type of media :

    Miscellaneous


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English




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