Qualification and in-flight demonstration of a European tether deployment system on YES2

Abstract

This paper highlights the design, qualification and mission performance of the tether deployer system on the second Young Engineers’ Satellite (YES2), that featured a tethered momentum transfer. The deployer is designed with a broad range of near-term tether applications in mind. The system contains the tether, including features to enhance safety and wound up in controlled manner onto a spool core, optical deployment sensors, a “barberpole” friction brake controlled by a stepper motor and a triple tether cutter system. To initiate the deployment a spring-based ejection system was developed, and to apply accurate momentum transfer a timer and release system is present on the subsatellite side. A small, 6 kg re-entry capsule was developed as subsatellite. On September 25th, 2007, YES2 deployed a 32 km tether in orbit and gathered a wealth of data. Confidence is gained from the mission results for use of the deployer in future missions.