RESEARCH ON LARGE, HIGHLY ACCURATE INFLATABLE REFLECTORS

VERY LARGE AND ACCURATE REFLECTIVE SURFACES WILL BE REQUIRED FOR FUTURE APPLICATIONS SUCH AS LASER POWER TRANSMISSION, LASER PROPULSION, SOLAR ENERGY COLLECTION, ANTENNAS AND TELESCOPES. PRESENT TECHNIQUES USED TO CONSTRUCT HIGHLY ACCURATE REFLECTORS ARE LIMITED IN APPLICATION TO DIAMETERS OF A FEW METERS (LESS THAN 5). METALLIZED THIN-FILM MEMBRANES HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO SATISFY THE REQUIREMENTS OF MOST FUTURE APPLICATIONS WITH MINIMUM WEIGHT SYSTEMS. THIS EFFORT PROPOSES TO IDENTIFY MATERIALS AND CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES TO IMPROVE THE ACCURACY OF INFLATABLE REFLECTORS OVER THAT ACHIEVED BY PREVIOUS EFFORTS. A NEW AND NOVEL APPROACH TO ACTIVE CONTROL WILL BE COMPARED TO BEST EFFORTS ATTAINED BY CONVENTIONAL PRESSURE SHAPING OF HOMOGENEOUS AND GORED THIN-FILM REFLECTORS.