Experts to test penetrator technology in space for potential exploration of asteroids or the Moon
Monday 3 September 2012
UK experts in spacecraft technology are to use a nano-satellite mission to test novel penetrator control techniques which can be applied in exploration mission to asteroids or the Moon.
The Autonomy Research Group headed by Dr Yang Gao at the Surrey Space Centre (SSC) of the University of Surrey in collaboration with EADS Astrium in Stevenage has been developing enabling technologies for the so-called “planetary micro-penetrators”, which represent an unique family of small, potentially low-cost, hard landing spacecraft.
The penetrators will survive from the hard impact into the planetary bodies after orbital deployment and one of the key technical challenges is to ensure the spacecraft is aimed at the target planet vertically during the final few minutes of descent using its onboard attitude control. Current well-established control methods can achieve this but require four to six actuators and are hence massive and expensive.
The SSC research group has tackled the problem based on novel spin-stabilisation control algorithms that only require a single actuator at minimum.
Dr Yang Gao said: “This will be one step closer to make low-cost planetary missions feasible using micro-penetrators that, for example, will be beneficial for achieving top-level scientific goals in planetary exploration.” The first in-space demonstration of the new control algorithms will be in an upcoming Surrey nano-satellite mission.
Astrium, which has contributed to the development of the control methods, has sponsored the penetrator technology project and welcomes its first in-space demonstration by the SSC team.
An Astrium Guidance, Navigation and Control Systems Specialist Mr Mark Watt said: "Testing these novel control methods in-orbit will increase the likelihood of their use in future Penetrator missions and potentially in other applications".
Editors' Notes
Notes to Editors:
The Surrey Space Centre (SSC), a Research Centre of the Faculty of Electronics and Physical Sciences (FEPS) at the University of Surrey, is a world leading Centre of Excellence in Space Engineering, whose aim is to underpin the technical development of the space industry through its advanced research programmes.
SSC, comprising over 90 researchers and, faculty develops new innovative technologies which are exploited by the space industry. It provides well-focused space engineering education, postgraduate and industrial short courses, training the next generation space scientists, engineers, entrepreneurs and business leaders.
www.surrey.ac.uk/SSC
Twitter: @SpaceAtSurrey
Media Enquiries
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