Design of an end-to-end demonstration mission of a Formation-Flying Synthetic Aperture Radar (FF-SAR) based on microsatellites

The paper focuses on space system design aspects related to an end-to-end demonstration mission, aiming at showing the feasibility of a Formation Flying Synthetic Aperture Radar (FF-SAR) with microsatellite class platforms (~100 kg). Trajectory design approaches that can fulfil payload requirements are addressed to enable selected FF-SAR applications. The exploitation of these applications relies on suitable combinations of FF-SAR techniques like Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) enhancement, High-Resolution Wide Swath (HRWS) SAR imaging, and Coherence Resolution Enhancement (CRE). In this framework, a cluster of 3 micro-satellites, working in X-band, flying in a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) close-formation, has been designed as a candidate end-to-end system demonstration mission. One satellite embarks a Transmitting-Receiving (Tx/Rx) radar, i.e. it is a monostatic SAR. The other two satellites are Receiving-only platforms. Critical design aspects related to spacecraft subsystems and formation-flying analysis are addressed to confirm the technical feasibility of the spaceborne distributed system implementing the FF-SAR principle.     

Improvement in the GERB short wave flux estimations over snow covered surfaces

Because space-borne radiometers do not measure the Earth’s outgoing fluxes directly, angular distribution models (ADMs) are required to relate actual radiance measurement to flux at given solar angle, satellite-viewing geometries, surface, and atmospheric conditions. The conversion of one footprint broad-band radiance into the corresponding flux requires therefore one to first characterize each footprint in terms of surface type and cloud cover properties to properly select the adequate ADM.

A snow (and sea-ice) retrieval technique based on spectral measurements from the Spinning Enhanced Visible and Infrared Imager (SEVIRI) on board Meteosat 8 is presented. It has been developed to improve the scene identification and thus the ADM selection in the near-real time processing of the Geostationary Earth Radiation Budget (GERB) data at the Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium. The improvement in the GERB short wave flux estimations over snow covered scene types resulting from angular conversion using dedicated snow ADMs (e.g., empirical snow ADMs and/or pre-computed theoretical snow ADM) instead of empirical snow-free ADMs is discussed.     

Beacon Monitoring: Reducing the Cost of Nominal Spacecraft Operations

Beacon monitoring is an architecture for augmenting on-board health assessment software with the following elements: a transmitter that periodically broadcasts this health assessment to the ground, a network of globally distributed low-cost monitoring stations that relays the health assessment to mission control, and an automated mission control system for notifying on-call operators and initiating appropriate response actions. While beacon monitoring is often cited as a means of lowering nominal monitoring costs for particular missions, these claims have typically been qualitative and undiscriminating in nature. This study introduces modeling and experimentation as means of providing a more fundamental validation of the cost-effectiveness of beacon monitoring. Results include simple quantitative estimates of first-order performance metrics, experimental data that verifies predicted performance and validates the use of beacon monitoring for a test mission, and a method for assessing the value of beacon monitoring for general satellites missions.     

空间遥感器大口径轻量化扫描镜材料发展与制作方法探讨

扫描镜是光机扫描型空间遥感器的重要组成元件。文章针对目前空间遥感器上应用的大口径轻量化扫描镜,从材料和制作方法方面进行了一定的技术研究。     

压缩式压电传感器轴向灵敏度的幅值线性度问题

本文了压电传感器的结构原理,说明了压电传感器幅值灵敏度的线性问题,分析了正反向灵敏度的差异和“饱和现象”,以便在生产、鉴定与使用时加以注意。     

跟踪空间非合作目标的一种相对轨道确定方法研究

研究近地轨道卫星沿航向跟踪空间非合作目标的相对轨道确定问题。首先给出以追踪星与非合作目标轨道根数差分描述的相对运动方程;其次根据星间测量几何关系对应的测量方程,提出一种新的基于两步估计的相对轨道确定方法;最后通过数学仿真验证了收敛速度快于扩展卡尔曼滤波,并对初始状态的选取不敏感,具有一定鲁棒性。     

常压热试验技术在整星级航天器研制中的应用研究

针对航天器常压热试验技术在中国返回式卫星研制过程中的应用进行了研究,论述了常压热试验隔间的设计、常压热试验技术的原理和方法,然后就试验结果以及试验过程中涉及到的几个重要问题进行了分析讨论。通过分析可得,常压热试验达到了对卫星进行可靠性考核的试验目的,对航天器研制的流程再造具有重要意义。     

热电致冷器和毛细泵驱动的小型热公用回路

适合卫星应用的小型热公用回路,可以实现发热设备在星内立体布局,摆脱对散热面的依赖,使卫星的集成度提高,满足大型有效载荷按功能集成后的散热需要。用毛细泵代替机械泵,可以实现无运动部件的高可靠、长寿命、适合卫星应用的小型两相热公用回路。该回路需要对毛细泵主动加热促使工质流动,需要消耗一定的功率。如何降低毛细泵的功耗,是毛细泵驱动的热公用回路实用化的关键。理论和实验证明,热电致冷器在小温差下有较高的热泵系数,用热电致冷器加热毛细泵比直接电加热更经济。     

浅谈并行工程及其在新机研制中的应用

介绍了并行工程组织方式的演变过程及其实施要素和特点;论述了并行工程在新机各研制阶段的实施方法和任务;举例说明了国内外多个机型的研制应用及综合效益情况,并对我国企业实施并行工程应注意的问题提出了建议。