The International Space Station, which has pulled most of its electricity from eight large solar panels for the past 15 years, will be powered by six new solar panels. The new add-on will provide a 20 to 30 percent increase in total power and will enable the complex’s growing research capabilities and commercial opportunities.
Boeing will provide the new panels under a $ 103 million change in the International Space Station maintenance contract with NASA.
The station’s original solar panel blades have been operating continuously since they were deployed by space shuttle crews in December 2000, September 2006, June 2007 and March 2009. The first pair of solar panels has been providing energy for more than two decades now. As more modules are added to the station with each passing year, the number of the space station’s crew and its activities in the orbiting laboratory indirectly increased.
Existing panels, though they continue to function well, show signs of deterioration. As the new arrays to be placed in front of six of the existing panels are smaller but more efficient than the existing solar arrays, it is expected to meet the current energy needs of the station with a significant performance increase.
The new 63 feet x 20 feet arrays will shade just over half the length of existing strings and connect to the same power system to increase the available supply.
Eight stream strings are currently capable of generating up to 160 kilowatts of power during orbital daylight hours, with about half of that stored in batteries for use when the station is in the shadow of the Earth. Each new array will generate more than 20 kilowatts of electricity, with a total increased power of 120 kilowatts during orbit daytime.
The remaining uncovered space of the original solar panels will continue to generate approximately 95 kilowatts of power for a total of up to 215 kilowatts to support station operations when completed.
The solar panels will be delivered to the station in pairs in unpressurized hulls of the SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft during three replenishment missions, starting in May 2021, a few months before the second pair reaches its 15th year of use in orbit. The installation of each new solar array will require two spacewalks: one to prepare the worksite with a modification kit, and the other to set up the panel.
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Halit Yusuf Genç
Sources:
Boeing to give space station a solar boost – Airline Ratings
Boeing to boost space station power supply with new solar arrays | collectSPACE
Boeing to boost space station power supply with new solar arrays | Space
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