Test evolution: RADARSAT-1 to RADARSAT-2
Test methodology for large spacecraft like RADARSAT-1 and RADARSAT-2 has been modified over the last decade resulting in changes to test environments. These changes in the required test environment have necessitated improvements in the test configuration modelling, instrumentation, and data acquisition systems. This paper will identify the significant changes and how the RADARSAT-2 assembly integration and test program has implemented these improvements.
Assembly, Integration, and Test Methods for Operationally Responsive Space Satellites
Abstract : Current government and industry standards in spacecraft testing result in an Assembly, Integration, and Test (AIT) timeline greater than six months. These standards will not support the vision of Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) to deploy a satellite within six days to fill an urgent need. Using the Air Force Research Laboratory's Plug-and-Play Satellite (PnPSat), multiple Rapid AIT trials were conducted. By exercising the AIT process with various spacecraft configurations and personnel, methods for reducing or modifying traditional testing regimen were investigated.
Description of RADARSAT-2 synthetic aperture radar design
This article is one in a series of articles describing the RADARSAT-2 program and is intended to give readers a top-level description of the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) payload design and performance. RADARSAT-2 is Canada's second SAR earth observation satellite. It will satisfy all the imaging needs of RADARSAT-1 users and provide additional advanced imaging capabilities. EMS Technologies (Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Que.) is responsible for the design and construction of the payload, including the C-band SAR system. The SAR contains sophisticated electronics that feed a state-of-the-art distributed active phased-array antenna consisting of 512 transmit/receive modules (TRMs) with radio frequency (RF) and power distribution networks. Each TRM feeds a dual-polarization patch radiated subarray. This provides increased flexibility and capability over other commercial SAR remote sensing satellites. Thus, RADARSAT-2 will offer high quality products, including selectable polarization and fully polarimetric data, ultra-fine images with spatial resolution of 3 m, and a moving object detection experiment (MODEX) imaging mode.