Radiation Hardened Mirror Coating for Spacecraft And Interceptors

A single nuclear detonation in space may cause the failure of satellite systems currently in low earth orbit. A primary failure mode for many satellite components involves the damage induced by surface heating from intense X-ray radiation emitted during the first moments after a nuclear detonation. Surface Optics Corporation (SOC), in conjunction with ATK Mission Research (ATK-MR), will demonstrate a radiation hardened reflective coating system for spacecraft and interceptor mirrors. The proposed innovation consists of a patented, non-tarnishing silver mirror coating , which may be applied to lightweight substrate materials such as silicon-carbide and beryllium. Because of its lower atomic number, silver is known to have better radiation resistance than metals such as gold, yet silver has not been used extensively for first surface mirrors because of its susceptibility to tarnishing during terrestrial storage. Since the anti-tarnishing barrier is extremely thin and comprised primarily of the low atomic number elements silicon and nitrogen, it is expected the proposed coating scheme will provide a naturally radiation resilient mirror system. In addition, silver is the most reflective of all metals, therefore, the mirror's optical performance will be significantly improved.