Coarse Sun Sensor (CSS) Pyramid
Adcole Space (Redwire)
A two-axis analog sun sensor assembly containing four cosine-response detectors in a pyramid arrangement for full-hemisphere sun detection. Used for solar array pointing, sun acquisition, and fail-safe recovery.
Technical specifications
- Sensor Type
- Analog cosine-response photodiode (×4)
- Axes
- 2 (two-axis measurement)
- Configuration
- Pyramid (4-detector assembly)
- Dry Mass
- 0.13 kg
- Average Power
- N/A (passive optical detection)
- Heritage
- Yes — 1,000+ sensors flown since 1960s
- Status
- In Production
- Form Factor
- SmallSat compatible
About
The Adcole Space Coarse Sun Sensor Pyramid is a two-axis sun sensor system that integrates four cosine-response photodetectors arranged in a four-faced pyramid geometry. This configuration provides full two-axis sun angle determination across a wide field of view without any moving parts, making it ideal for spacecraft attitude initialization and fail-safe recovery.
Each detector in the pyramid responds to incident sunlight with an analog signal proportional to the cosine of the sun angle, and the electronics unit compares the four outputs to compute the sun vector. The pyramid design ensures at least one or two detectors are always sunlit across virtually any spacecraft orientation, providing robust sun acquisition capability.
The CSS Pyramid has heritage across hundreds of spacecraft including GPS satellites, planetary exploration missions, and Earth observation platforms. It supports solar array pointing during normal operations and provides the critical fail-safe signal to reorient the spacecraft to a safe sun-pointing attitude in emergencies.
Documentation
- redwire-coarse-sun-sensor-pyramid-flysheet.pdf rdw.com ↗
- SatCatalog_-_Adcole_Maryland_Aerospace_-_Coarse_Sun_Sensor_Pyramid_Type_-_Datasheet.pdf satcatalog.s3.amazonaws.com ↗
Need the full ICD, test reports or a specific revision? Ask the supplier directly.
