Session
Weekend Session 8: Advanced Technologies - Research & Academia II
Location
Utah State University, Logan, UT
Abstract
NASA's Artemis program is turning the attention back to the Moon. As an example of Artemis I, CubeSats can now be inserted into lunar orbits by ridesharing. Designers must become familiarized with the additional technical challenges of operating far away from the usual low Earth orbit (LEO) condition, especially regarding the lunar radiation and thermal environments. This paper analyzes the thermal environment loads for a spacecraft operating in a low lunar orbit (LLO) at 100km altitude with a fixed nadir-pointing orientation. A simplified thermal model is presented to assess the impact of the surfaces' thermal-optical properties and internal thermal resistances on the maximum dissipation power for 6U and 12U CubeSats at different orbital Beta-Sun angles. The occurrences of Solar eclipses in the next decade are reviewed, as well as the impact on the required heating energy to keep the CubeSats in the safe temperature range during the longest eclipse of the series. The radiation analysis focuses on the total ionization dose received by the spacecraft in LLO compared to LEO. The impact of a full-body radiation shielding approach on the chassis mass is also assessed for different wall thicknesses.
Thermal and Radiation Design Considerations for CubeSats in Low Lunar Orbit
Utah State University, Logan, UT
NASA's Artemis program is turning the attention back to the Moon. As an example of Artemis I, CubeSats can now be inserted into lunar orbits by ridesharing. Designers must become familiarized with the additional technical challenges of operating far away from the usual low Earth orbit (LEO) condition, especially regarding the lunar radiation and thermal environments. This paper analyzes the thermal environment loads for a spacecraft operating in a low lunar orbit (LLO) at 100km altitude with a fixed nadir-pointing orientation. A simplified thermal model is presented to assess the impact of the surfaces' thermal-optical properties and internal thermal resistances on the maximum dissipation power for 6U and 12U CubeSats at different orbital Beta-Sun angles. The occurrences of Solar eclipses in the next decade are reviewed, as well as the impact on the required heating energy to keep the CubeSats in the safe temperature range during the longest eclipse of the series. The radiation analysis focuses on the total ionization dose received by the spacecraft in LLO compared to LEO. The impact of a full-body radiation shielding approach on the chassis mass is also assessed for different wall thicknesses.
