Thermal Verification for Future Large Telecommunications Satellites

The continued growth in demand for space-based telecommunications systems, coupled with the rapidly decreasing availability of orbital slots at geosynchronous altitude, brings closer the realization of advanced, very large communications satellites. This paper examines the impact that such large satellites will have on the thermal verification process, especially the degree to which present thermal testing and analytical modeling techniques must be adapted. In particular, the effects of satellite modularization and the use of advanced thermal technologies in the satellite's Thermal Control Subsystem are investigated.