| Work Detail |
Two new IROSA panels will expand the power production capacity of a microgravity complex on the space station.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced that it has launched its 28th commercial resupply mission with SpaceX, sending 3,000 kilograms of cargo to the international space station.
A SpaceX Dragon spacecraft powered by a Falcon 9 rocket will carry various measuring instruments, as well as two deployable solar arrays. The arrays, called IROSAs (International Space Station Roll Out Solar Arrays), will provide additional power to the microgravity complex. Live coverage of the arrival will begin at 4:15 a.m. EST on Tuesday, June 6, on NASA Television, the agency website, and the NASA app.
As of 2021, the International Space Station featured 250 kW of IROSA capacity, and the two new arrays can add up to 60 kW of capacity.
These arrays are compact in design, more affordable, and offer autonomous capabilities that can enhance a wide spectrum of scientific and commercial missions, from low-Earth orbit to interplanetary travel.
ROSA is a Redwire Space technology, originally developed by Deployable Space Systems (DSS) with support from NASA. Since 2009, NASA has funded parts of the DSS journey, from ROSAs conceptualization through development, culminating in successful technology demonstrations, use in operational missions, and other potential cutting-edge applications. DSS was acquired by Redwire in 2021, continuing the infusion of ROSA into both NASA and commercial missions.
“You come up with a simple concept, but to take it into space, riding along with that controlled explosion is what drives your design,” said Ken Steele, Redwires vice president of business development.
The Sun is the largest source of energy in space, producing more energy per second than humanity has consumed in the past 70 years, according to NASA. Most spacecraft use solar panels to harness the Suns continuous power to provide power for various needs such as payload and thermal operations.
However, solar panel designs are based on two key factors: size and reliability, which have been difficult to optimize. The size of the panels influences the cost of launch, while long-term reliability is necessary to withstand the harsh environment of space, including temperature swings, radiation, and micrometeorite impacts.
With standard solar panel designs resulting in modules that are rigid, large, heavy, and unwieldy, NASA realized how ROSA could improve solar panel design for launch into orbit and beyond.
Included in the NASA/SpaceX shipment are devices for studying thunderstorms and a system that tests the viability of plant seeds produced in space and returned to Earth. The results could provide information on how to grow multiple generations of plants to provide food and other services on future space missions, NASA said.
The cargo mission will also send devices to study the effects of space on telomeres, genetic materials that protect human chromosomes. While telomeres shorten with age and wear, scientists have studied their lengthening in space. Other devices in the 7,000-pound cargo include measurement tools to monitor glacier melt and cosmic radiation weathering.
Recently, Caltech researchers have managed to send energy to Earth from solar panels located in space. The pilot project deployed a constellation of modular spacecraft equipped with photovoltaic panels to collect sunlight, convert it into electricity, and transmit it wirelessly over long distances to where it is needed. According to Caltech, this technology could be useful in remote areas that lack transmission infrastructure. |
