Reducing temperature swing of space objects with temperature-adaptive solar or radiative coating

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Lacking the atmosphere for temperature neutralization, objects in outer space without thermal control undergo large temperature swings. Effective temperature management technologies (TMTs) are essential to avoid undesirable effects caused by extreme thermal conditions. However, existing high-performance TMTs impose additional burden on the limited mass and power budgets of spacecrafts. Very recently, temperature-adaptive solar coatings (TASCs) and temperature-adaptive radiative coatings (TARCs) emerged as novel light-weight, energy-free temperature-regulation approaches for terrestrial objects with excellent thermal performance. Here, we simulate and present the great potential of TASCs and TARCs as future passive TMTs for space objects. A case study of a geosynchronous satellite with body-mounted solar panels covered by TARC exhibits an interior temperature swing as small as 20.3°C–25.6°C in an orbital period even with solar eclipses. These findings provide insight into the superior performance of TASCs and TARCs in space and will promote their application in extraterrestrial missions. • TASCs and TARCs are promising for passive temperature management in outer space • TASCs and TARCs do not bring in extra mass, volume, or power burdens to spacecrafts • The thermal performance of TASCs and TARCs is simulated with satellite thermal models • Simulations show a temperature swing as low as 5.3°C in a 1U-CubeSat covered by TARCs Advanced high-performance passive temperature management technologies without additional mass/volume/power burdens are required for space exploration. Dong et al. propose use of emerging temperature-adaptive solar or radiative coatings (TASCs or TARCs, respectively) on space objects and simulate their temperature-regulation performance with satellite thermal models, demonstrating the potential of TARCs and TARCs in outer space.