News Article
Emcore wins contract for NASA green propellant infusion
Solar panels populated with Emcore's most advanced ZTJ III-V triple-junction solar cells will power a satellite that will carry the GPIM payload
Emcore Corporation, a provider of compound semiconductor-based components and subsystems for the fibre optic and solar power markets, has been awarded a contract by ATK.
The company will design and manufacture solar panels for NASA's Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM) planned for launch in 2015.
ATK will integrate Emcore's solar panels into its heritage-designed solar arrays for final flight configuration for the GPIM satellite.
The GPIM project will demonstrate the practical capabilities of AF-M315E, a high-performance green alternative to hydrazine that has traditionally been used to fuel many spacecrafts.
This innovative, low-toxicity propellant is expected to improve overall vehicle performance. It boasts a higher density than hydrazine, meaning that more can be stored in containers of the same volume, and it delivers a greater thrust per given quantity of fuel.
GPIM is supported by co-investigators. These include NASA's Glenn Research Centre and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio; Aerojet Corporation, a GenCorp company in Washington; NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida; and the U.S. Air Force Space & Missile Systems Centre at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico.
"ATK is pleased to be providing the solar arrays for the GPIM project to Ball Aerospace, and we look forward to another successful collaboration with Emcore in support of this innovative program," says Dave Messner, General Manager of ATK Space Systems in Goleta, California.
"Emcore is extremely pleased and honoured to receive this program award from ATK," adds Brad Clevenger, General Manager of Emcore's Photovoltaics Division. "Emcore has partnered with ATK on many successful missions, and we greatly value our long-standing business relationship. We look forward to supporting ATK on the Green Propellant Infusion Mission."
Emcore is a manufacturer of highly-efficient radiation-hard solar cells for space power applications. With a Beginning-Of-Life (BOL) conversion efficiency nearing 30 percent and the option for a patented, onboard monolithic bypass diode, Emcore's multi-junction solar cells provide amongst the highest available power to interplanetary spacecraft and earth orbiting satellites.
The company will design and manufacture solar panels for NASA's Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM) planned for launch in 2015.
ATK will integrate Emcore's solar panels into its heritage-designed solar arrays for final flight configuration for the GPIM satellite.
The GPIM project will demonstrate the practical capabilities of AF-M315E, a high-performance green alternative to hydrazine that has traditionally been used to fuel many spacecrafts.
This innovative, low-toxicity propellant is expected to improve overall vehicle performance. It boasts a higher density than hydrazine, meaning that more can be stored in containers of the same volume, and it delivers a greater thrust per given quantity of fuel.
GPIM is supported by co-investigators. These include NASA's Glenn Research Centre and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio; Aerojet Corporation, a GenCorp company in Washington; NASA's Kennedy Space Centre in Florida; and the U.S. Air Force Space & Missile Systems Centre at Kirtland Air Force Base in New Mexico.
"ATK is pleased to be providing the solar arrays for the GPIM project to Ball Aerospace, and we look forward to another successful collaboration with Emcore in support of this innovative program," says Dave Messner, General Manager of ATK Space Systems in Goleta, California.
"Emcore is extremely pleased and honoured to receive this program award from ATK," adds Brad Clevenger, General Manager of Emcore's Photovoltaics Division. "Emcore has partnered with ATK on many successful missions, and we greatly value our long-standing business relationship. We look forward to supporting ATK on the Green Propellant Infusion Mission."
Emcore is a manufacturer of highly-efficient radiation-hard solar cells for space power applications. With a Beginning-Of-Life (BOL) conversion efficiency nearing 30 percent and the option for a patented, onboard monolithic bypass diode, Emcore's multi-junction solar cells provide amongst the highest available power to interplanetary spacecraft and earth orbiting satellites.
