Paper Category: Satellite Manufacturing
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Influence of Porosity Distributions on the Thermal Snap Response of Functionally Graded Sandwich Solar Panels in Low Earth Orbit
Traditional satellite aluminum or solid laminates solar panels are susceptible to significant thermal distortion and thermal snap during rapid temperature fluctuations in orbit. For modern lightweight satellite architectures, a critical design constraint arises from the inherent risk of thermal snap phenomenon where high-aspect-ratio flexible structures undergo dynamic instabilities due to rapid transitions in heat flux.…
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Semi-Autonomous Reconnaissance Satellite: A Laboratory Demonstration of End-to-End On-Board Mission Autonomy
Real-time satellite responsiveness to user requests from the field remains largely unavailable in current space systems. Such capabilities are typically restricted to low-altitude airborne platforms, primarily due to limited satellite communication bandwidth, intermittent ground contact, and the reliance on ground-based mission planning. Enabling true responsiveness requires a paradigm shift toward highly autonomous satellites, in which…
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Optimisation of Star Tracker Orientation and Attitude Trajectories for Space-To-Ground Optical Communication on CubeSats
Optical communication systems promise a step-change in data return capability for CubeSats but introduce exceptionally demanding pointing requirements. In some cases, sub-milliradian level pointing of the satellite is required to successfully acquire a laser signal from the ground. This is further complicated by the relatively high angular velocities and angular accelerations of the satellite-to-ground target…
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Scaling Heat Rejection for High-Capability SmallSats: From Conduction to Deployable Two-Phase Radiators
The rapid growth of the SmallSat market has been driven by increased launch access and miniaturization and commercialization of spacecraft grade electronics, leading to steadily increasing onboard power and thus heat dissipation. As SmallSats evolve toward higher capability payloads, thermal control systems must reject greater heat loads while meeting aggressive Size, Weight, Power, and Cost…
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Integrated Design of a Modular Thermoplastic Satellite Bus for Very Low Earth Orbit Applications
Thermoplastic composites remain underutilized as primary satellite bus structures, largely due to the absence of integrated design approaches that, simultaneously, account for material anisotropy, manufacturing constraints, and launcher-driven requirements. This work addresses that gap through the development of a modular thermoplastic satellite bus tailored to the structural drivers of very low Earth orbit (VLEO) missions,…
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High-Agile Spacecraft with Flexible Appendages: Limits, Risks, and Mitigation
Modern Earth-observation missions increasingly rely on high-agility retargeting to maximise target acquisitions. At the same time, new-generation spacecraft are adopting larger, lightweight, and lightly damped appendages such as high-power solar arrays and deployable SAR antennas, which introduce low-frequency flexible dynamics and tighter slew-and-settle constraints. The combined trend raises a central question for mission design: how…
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Rocket Lab’s Enabling Capabilities for Affordable Science Missions
As global priorities shift toward sovereign rapid-response space systems, Rocket Lab addresses the barriers of high cost and long lead times through vertical integration. By controlling the mission lifecycle from launch via Electron and Neutron to in-house satellite manufacturing, Rocket Lab enables partners to move from concept to orbit with unprecedented agility. While Rocket Lab…
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EPASS NANO – A COMPACT AND RELIABLE SOLUTION FOR SATELLITE ELECTRICAL PASSIVATION
The growing regulation for satellite end-of-life operations, as outlined in French national law (LOS) and European legislation (EU Space Law), underscores the critical need for robust electrical passivation subsystems. This is particularly challenging for nano-satellites, where strict reliability requirements, compact design, and budget constraints must be balanced. In response, the French Space Agency (CNES) and…
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Modular, Serviceable and Demisable Small Satellites: Engineering a Resilient European Space Defence Architecture
Europe’s defence, security, and critical-infrastructure missions are becoming increasingly dependent on small satellite constellations for communications, ISR, navigation resilience and environmental awareness. Yet most small satellites are still engineered as disposable assets, creating strategic fragility, rising replacement costs, and growing orbital sustainability risks. This paper presents a new engineering doctrine for small satellites based on…