This content is not included in
your SAE MOBILUS subscription, or you are not logged in.
Thermal Model Correlation for Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
Technical Paper
2007-01-3243
ISSN: 0148-7191, e-ISSN: 2688-3627
Annotation ability available
Sector:
Language:
English
Abstract
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) launched on August 12, 2005 and began aerobraking at Mars in March 2006. In order to save propellant, MRO used aerobraking to modify the initial orbit at Mars. The spacecraft passed through the atmosphere briefly on each orbit; during each pass the spacecraft was slowed by atmospheric drag, thus lowering the orbit apoapsis. The largest area on the spacecraft, most affected by aeroheating, was the solar arrays. A thermal analysis of the solar arrays was conducted at NASA Langley Research Center to simulate their performance throughout the entire roughly 6-month period of aerobraking. A companion paper describes the development of this thermal model. This model has been correlated against many sets of flight data. Several maneuvers were performed during the cruise to Mars, such as thruster calibrations, which involve large abrupt changes in the spacecraft orientation relative to the sun. The data obtained from these maneuvers allowed the model to be well-correlated with regard to thermal mass, conductive connections, and solar response well before arrival at the planet. Correlation against flight data for both in-cruise maneuvers and drag passes was performed. Adjustments made to the model included orientation during the drag pass, solar flux, Martian surface temperature, through-array resistance, aeroheating gradient due to angle of attack, and aeroheating accommodation coefficient. Methods of correlation included comparing the model to flight temperatures, slopes, temperature deltas between sensors, and solar and planet direction vectors. Correlation and model accuracy over 400 aeroheating drag passes were determined, with overall model accuracy better than 5ºC.
Authors
Topic
Citation
Amundsen, R., Dec, J., and Gasbarre, J., "Thermal Model Correlation for Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter," SAE Technical Paper 2007-01-3243, 2007, https://doi.org/10.4271/2007-01-3243.Also In
References
- Dec John A. Gasbarre Joseph F. Amundsen Ruth M. “Thermal Modeling of the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's Solar Panel and Instruments During Aerobraking” 2007-01-3244, 37th International Conference On Environmental Systems Chicago, Illinois July 2007
- Amundsen Ruth M. Gasbarre Joseph F. Dec John A. “Thermal Analysis Methods for Aerobraking Heating” 16th Thermal & Fluid Analysis Workshop (TFAWS 05) Orlando, Florida August 8 August 12 2005
- Dec John A. Amundsen Ruth M. “A Thermal Analysis Approach for the Mars Odyssey Spacecraft's Solar Array” AIAA 2003 Thermophysics Conference Orlando, Florida June 2003
- Amundsen Ruth M. Dec John A. George Ben E. “Aeroheating Thermal Model Correlation for Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Solar Array” AIAA Journal of Spacecraft and Rockets 42 3 May-June 2005 464 473
- Thermal Desktop User Manual, Version 4.7 Cullimore and Ring Technologies, Inc. October 2004
- MSC/PATRAN User Manual, Version 2005 MacNeal-Schwendler Corporation December 2004
- Dec John A. “Probabilistic Thermal Analysis During Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Aerobraking” AIAA-2007-1214, 45th AIAA Aerospace Sciences Conference Reno, Nevada January 2007