Using the ISS as a testbed to prepare for the next generation of space-based telescopes

Marc Postman; William B. Sparks; Fengchuan Liu; Kim Ess; Joseph Green; Kenneth G. Carpenter; Harley Thronson; Renaud Goullioud

doi:10.1117/12.926492

21 September 2012 Using the ISS as a testbed to prepare for the next generation of space-based telescopes

Marc Postman, William B. Sparks, Fengchuan Liu, Kim Ess, Joseph Green, Kenneth G. Carpenter, Harley Thronson, Renaud Goullioud

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 8442, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2012: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave; 84421T (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.926492
Event: SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation, 2012, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Abstract

The infrastructure available on the ISS provides a unique opportunity to develop the technologies necessary to assemble large space telescopes. Assembling telescopes in space is a game-changing approach to space astronomy. Using the ISS as a testbed enables a concentration of resources on reducing the technical risks associated with integrating the technologies, such as laser metrology and wavefront sensing and control (WFSandC), with the robotic assembly of major components including very light-weight primary and secondary mirrors and the alignment of the optical elements to a diffraction-limited optical system in space. The capability to assemble the optical system and remove and replace components via the existing ISS robotic systems such as the Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM), or by the ISS Flight Crew, allows for future experimentation as well as repair if necessary. In 2015, first light will be obtained by the Optical Testbed and Integration on ISS eXperiment (OpTIIX), a small 1.5-meter optical telescope assembled on the ISS. The primary objectives of OpTIIX include demonstrating telescope assembly technologies and end-to-end optical system technologies that will advance future large optical telescopes.

Citation Download Citation

Marc Postman, William B. Sparks, Fengchuan Liu, Kim Ess, Joseph Green, Kenneth G. Carpenter, Harley Thronson, and Renaud Goullioud "Using the ISS as a testbed to prepare for the next generation of space-based telescopes", Proc. SPIE 8442, Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2012: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave, 84421T (21 September 2012); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.926492

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