System analysis of the sandwich solar power satellite

McNally, I., Ceriotti, M. and Radice, G. (2012) System analysis of the sandwich solar power satellite. In: 63rd International Astronautical Congress (IAC 2012), Naples, Italy, 1-5 Oct 2012,

Abstract

A multi-objective optimisation of the sandwich solar power satellite (SPS) is presented. The unique feature of the sandwich SPS is the combination of the microwave transmitting antenna and the photovoltaic (PV) arrays into a single ‘sandwich’ panel. The aim of the study is to identify optimal SPS systems for providing power to different regions. The optimisation minimises the total cost of development, manufacture and launch of the SPS system while maximising the total energy delivered by the SPS system to the ground-based receivers over the mission lifetime. The SPS model takes into account mass budget, orbital perturbations and orbital transfer costs. The optimal orbital location and physical parameters of an SPS system are found for supply of energy to different locations. Multiple satellite and multiple ground station cases are considered as well as the simpler single satellite and single ground station case. It is found that for low latitude ground stations geostationary SPS are preferred. For higher latitudes, polar orbits of varying size depending on the precise location of ground station are found. Results indicate that for supplying energy to high latitude ground stations a constellation of smaller SPSs is more cost-effective than a single larger SPS.

• Item Type: Conference Proceedings
• Additional Information: ISBN: 9781622769797
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Radice, Dr Gianmarco and Ceriotti, Dr Matteo
• Authors: McNally, I., Ceriotti, M., and Radice, G.
• College/School: College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Autonomous Systems and Connectivity; College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Systems Power and Energy