Active Spacecraft Jitter Cancellation Using Deployable Panels

Samara Aerospace proposes to advance spacecraft attitude control and jitter mitigation through its Multifunctional Structures for Attitude Control (MSAC) technology. MSAC integrates distributed strain actuators into deployable spacecraft structures, such as solar panels, to enable active jitter cancellation and large-angle slewing. This approach eliminates bulky, failure-prone flywheel-based control systems and passive vibration isolation methods, reducing spacecraft mass, volume, and complexity while improving precision pointing performance. MSAC achieves active noise cancellation by dynamically actuating deployable structures in response to disturbance forces, significantly improving settling time and stability for high-sensitivity payloads. This capability is particularly beneficial for missions requiring ultra-stable imaging, laser communications, and fine-pointing instruments. Unlike traditional reaction wheels and control moment gyroscopes, MSAC scales with spacecraft size—larger deployable panels provide greater attitude control authority, enabling both enhanced power generation and improved agility in a single system. In this Phase I SBIR, Samara Aerospace will demonstrate and quantify MSAC’s active noise-canceling capabilities using an existing two-panel test platform. The project will also validate controller scalability through simulation, ensuring MSAC can support spacecraft ranging from 50 to 500 kg. Key deliverables include a comprehensive performance report detailing jitter reduction and settling time improvements achieved with MSAC. MSAC has the potential to enhance stability for NASA deep-space observatories, large deployable structures, and high-precision science missions. Beyond NASA, the technology is well-suited for commercial satellite constellations, optical communication networks, and next-generation small satellite platforms that demand low-jitter, high-agility performance.