Abstract
The electric propulsion system NanoFEEP was integrated and tested in orbit on the UWE-4 satellite, which marks the first successful demonstration of an electric propulsion system on board a 1U CubeSat. In-orbit characterization measurements of the heating process of the propellant and the power consumption of the propulsion system at different thrust levels are presented. Furthermore, an analysis of the thrust vector direction based on its effect on the attitude of the spacecraft is described. The employed heater liquefies the propellant for a duration of 30 min per orbit and consumes 103 ± 4 mW. During this time, the respective thruster can be activated. The propulsion system including one thruster head, its corresponding heater, the neutralizer and the digital components of the power processing unit consume 8.5 ± 0.1 mW · μ A−1 + 184 ± 8.5 mW and scales with the emitter current. The estimated thrust directions of two thruster heads are at angles of 15.7 ± 7.6∘ and 13.2 ± 5.5∘ relative to their mounting direction in the CubeSat structure. In light of the very limited power on a 1U CubeSat, the NanoFEEP propulsion system renders a very viable option. The heater of subsequent NanoFEEP thrusters was already improved, such that the system can be activated during the whole orbit period.
Highlights
The University Wuerzburg Experimental satellite 4 (UWE-4) was developed and built from 2015 to 2018 in cooperation between University Wuerzburg, Institute Computer Science VII: Robotics and Telematics, and the TU Dresden, Institute of Aerospace Engineering, where the NanoFEEP propulsion system was developed
A photograph of the thruster heads integrated into the rails of UWE-4 is depicted in Figure 1, the Computer-Aided
The heaters are already improved for the version of NanoFEEP in order to increase the activation duration to enable the operation of the propulsion system indefinitely
Summary
The University Wuerzburg Experimental satellite 4 (UWE-4) was developed and built from 2015 to 2018 in cooperation between University Wuerzburg, Institute Computer Science VII: Robotics and Telematics, and the TU Dresden, Institute of Aerospace Engineering, where the NanoFEEP propulsion system was developed. It was launched on board a Soyuz in December 2018 and has been operated ever since with experimental campaigns targeting thrust estimation, hybrid attitude control between magnetic and electric actuators, and orbit control. A photograph of the thruster heads integrated into the rails of UWE-4 is depicted, the Computer-Aided A photograph of the thruster heads integrated into the rails of UWE-4 is depicted in Figure 1, the Computer-Aided
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