Flexible Solar Arrays for Small Spacecraft Buses

An increasing number of small satellite customers (Government and commercial) are planning projects that will require increasing amounts of power (1-3 KW) on a spacecraft that will be accommodated on variety of launch platforms. These advanced solar arrays must be large enough to collect 1-3 KW, yet stow into a compact volume, fit well with other spacecraft systems, and allow for tight integration with multiple spacecraft on the launch vehicle. As mission and power requirements can be highly variable, it is important that the solar array can be scalable to different physical sizes and power outputs. This project will provide a significant benefit for future customers as it will enable the design of a high-power solar array that can be easily integrated within the spacecraft, will work well with payloads, and will support DOD and commercial users. The performance goals of this SBIR that BCT will be targeting are 200W/Kg, a stowed volume of 30kW/m3, with a cost target that is significantly lower than $1000/W. The expected orbits include LEO, MEO, GEO with a lifetime of 5 years following a 5-year storage period.