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Life Testing of the Hollow Cathode Plasma Contactor for the ProSEDS MissionThe Propulsive Small Expendable Deployer System (ProSEDS) mission is designed to provide an on-orbit demonstration of the electrodynamic propulsion capabilities of tethers in space. The ProSEDS experiment will be a secondary payload on a Delta 11 unmanned expendable booster. A 5-km conductive tether is attached to the Delta 11 second stage and collects current from the low Earth orbit (LEO) plasma. A hollow cathode plasma contactor emits the collected electrons from the Delta II, completing the electrical circuit with the ambient plasma. The current flowing through the tether generates thrust based on the Lorentz Force Law. The thrust will be generated opposite to the velocity vector, slowing down the spacecraft and causing it to de-orbit in approximately 14 days compared to the normal 6 months. A 10-km non-conductive tether is between the conductive tether and an endmass containing several scientific instruments. The ProSEDS mission lifetime was set at I day because most of the primary objectives can be met in that time. The extended ProSEDS mission will be for as many days as possible, until the Delta 11 second stage burns up or the tether is severed by a micrometeoroid or space debris particle. The Hollow Cathode Plasma Contactor (HCPC) unit has been designed for a 12-day mission. Because of the science requirements to measure the background ambient plasma, the HCPC must operate on a duty cycle. Later in the ProSEDS mission, the HCPC is operated in a manner to allow charging of the secondary battery. Due to the unusual operating requirements by the ProSEDS mission, a development unit of the HCPC was built for thorough testing. This developmental unit was tested for a simulated ProSEDS mission, with measurements of the ability to start and stop during the duty cycle. These tests also provided valuable data for the ProSEDS software requirements. Qualification tests of the HCPC flight hardware are also discussed.
Document ID
20010021225
Acquisition Source
Marshall Space Flight Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Vaughn, Jason A.
(NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL United States)
Schneider, Todd A.
(NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL United States)
Finckenor, Miria M.
(NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL United States)
Munafo, Paul M.
Date Acquired
August 20, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 2001
Subject Category
Spacecraft Design, Testing And Performance
Meeting Information
Meeting: Spacecraft Charging Technology Conference
Location: Noordwijk
Country: Netherlands
Start Date: April 23, 2001
End Date: April 27, 2001
Funding Number(s)
PROJECT: RTOP 718-30-01
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Work of the US Gov. Public Use Permitted.

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