High Slew Rate Radiation Hardened Star Tracker

Optical Physics Company (OPC) is proposing to investigate a novel interferometric star tracker design with end-of-life measurement error of 0.13 arcseconds at a spacecraft slew rate of 2 deg/sec. The interferometer design is inherently rad-hard and athermal, easily capable of operating in the orbital temperature range (-65 to 65 degrees C) and radiation dose (300 krad). Furthermore the full star tracker has lost in space recovery capability similar to most high end star trackers. One proposed option adds an interferometric front end to a more traditional star tracker design, thereby building upon proven technology and leveraging the substantial investment in star trackers to date. The project will be conducted in cooperation with subcontractor Ball Aerospace in Boulder, Colorado, who will keep the technical goals aligned with customer needs. During Phase I a lab breadboard of the star interferometer with a white light simulated star source will be built and tested. In addition, an end-to-end analytic performance model will be developed and anchored to a wave-optic simulation of the system including radiation, thermal, vibration and slew disturbances plus data processing. The Phase I project will conclude with a blueprint of the Phase II prototype design and test plan.