The NGST sunshield is a lightweight, flexible structure consisting of multiple layers of pretensioned, thin-film membranes supported by deployable booms. The structural dynamic behavior of the sunshield must be well understood in order to predict its influence on observatory performance. Ground tests were carried out in a vacuum environment to characterize the structural dynamic behavior of a one-tenth scale model of the sunshield. Results from the tests will be used to validate analytical modeling techniques that can be used in conjunction with scaling laws to predict the performance of the full-sized structure. This paper summarizes the ground tests and presents representative results for the dynamic behavior of the sunshield.
Dynamic Testing of a Subscale Sunshield for the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST)
42nd AIAA Structures, Structural Dynamics, and Materials Conference ; 2001 ; Seattle, WA, United States
2001-01-01
Preprint
No indication
English
British Library Conference Proceedings | 2001
|Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST) Pathfinder Experiment Inflatable Sunshield in Space (ISIS)
SAE Technical Papers | 1999
|British Library Conference Proceedings | 2000
|