SAFE/DAE: Modal test in space

In September of 1984, NASA performed a series of experiments on orbit with a large solar wing attached to the Space Shuttle orbiter. These experiments, the Solar Array Flight Experiment (SAFE), mark the first tests of a large space structure in space. Extension, retraction, and dynamic tests had to be performed in space due to the fragility of the solar array. Due to the extendable and retractable design of the solar array, accelerometers and associated wires could not be used; therefore, remote sensing, the Dynamics Augmentation Experiment (DAE), was added to the SAFE program. The DAE uses a remote sensor based on star tracker technology to measure the dynamic response of the solar array. The DAE sensor tracked 18 targets on the solar array during free-decay response to a transient excitation. An overview of the SAFE/DAE is presented, highlighting analysis results from the remotely sensed data. Modal parameter estimates from the remotely sensed data were computed using the complex exponential and polyreference techniques.