Miniature Spinning Sun Sensor
Adcole Space (Redwire)
A compact sun sensor for spinning spacecraft providing sun aspect angle and sun crossing pulses for spin rate and spin axis orientation determination, with ±87.5° FOV and 0.25 kg mass.
Technical specifications
- Field of View
- ±87.5°
- Dry Mass
- 0.25 kg
- Average Power
- 0.5 W
- Measurements
- Sun aspect angle, sun crossing pulses
- Application
- Spinning spacecraft attitude determination
- Heritage
- Yes
- Status
- In Production
- Form Factor
- SmallSat compatible
About
The Adcole Space Miniature Spinning Sun Sensor is a specialized analog sun sensor designed specifically for spinning spacecraft. Unlike three-axis stabilized platforms, spinning satellites rotate continuously, and this sensor is uniquely engineered to exploit that rotation to extract sun aspect angle and sun crossing pulses from the periodic solar illumination as the sensor sweeps past the sun.
The sensor provides two key measurements for spinning spacecraft attitude determination: the sun aspect angle (angle between the spin axis and the sun direction) and sun crossing pulses (timing signals each time the sensor boresight crosses the sun). These measurements enable the spacecraft attitude control system to determine both the spin rate and the orientation of the spin axis relative to the sun.
With a ±87.5° field of view, the Miniature Spinning Sun Sensor provides coverage across the widest practical range for spinning satellite missions. Its compact 0.25 kg mass makes it suitable for small spinning platforms and nanosatellites. The sensor has established flight heritage across multiple missions.
Documentation
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