Development of an Engineering Model of the Re-Deployable Radiator for Deep Space Explorer

Abstract

Future deep space explorers need a technology that can drastically reduce the power consumption of heaters to enter the outer planets with small spacecraft. We are developing the re-deployable radiator named a Reversible Thermal Panel (RTP), which is a device that autonomously deploys and stows the radiator in response to changes in the temperature of the heat source, stowing the radiator at low temperatures to achieve an insulated state, and deploying the radiator at high temperatures to maximize the amount of heat dissipation. In order to achieve this autonomous thermal control, shape memory alloys are used as actuators, and also use highly thermally conductive graphite sheets as fins to improve heat dissipation efficiency. Japan is developing a deep space demonstrator called DESTINY+ to demonstrate future exploration technologies. For the on-orbit demonstration using DESTINY+, we have been developing an RTP Engineering Model (EM) with a mass of about 1.2 kg and a heat dissipation capability of more than 100 W. In this presentation, we report on the design, fabrication, and testing of an RTP-EM.