Speaker
Mr
Antonio Tramutola
(Thales Alenia Space)
Description
Exploration of planets is part of the space exploration of celestial structures of the outer space. Once a planet has been identified by astronomers and scientists as a target environment to be deeply analyzed, the technology needed to reach the objective are studied and developed by the industries. Complex space systems have to be designed to perform cruise, approach, landing and surface exploration, taking also into account stringent autonomy requirements. As a consequence the configuration of these systems is composed by modules with different functions connected each other in a composite spacecraft. Carrier or Orbiter module, Descent module and Rover module are the elements of the Exomars mission; Orbiter vehicle, Earth Return Vehicle, Earth Return Capsule plus Lander Platform and Lunar/Mars Ascent Vehicle are the modules designed in the Lunar Polar sample return and for Mars sample and return missions.
As a consequence the avionic system design has to consider this modular structure distributing properly the avionic functions (processing, communication, data handling, power distribution and autonomy) among the designed building blocks according to the mission needs. Key requirements for the exploration have to be considered in the avionic design: low power consumption, minimum mass, high computational capability, and reliable communication systems able to perform also Direct to Earth communication for command uplink and fast communication with orbiters for high data rate telemetry downlink.
Requirements inspire new technologies like Vision Based Navigation tailored to the different mission phases that provides high level of autonomy and specific sensors (radar, altimeters, LIDAR) integrated in compact avionic architectures. These technologies should possibly be based on COTS platforms able to provide high computational performance and significant cost reduction.
These new avionic platforms could be extended to mission scenario like Active Debris Removal or Rendezvous and Docking or Earth Observation providing opportunity for cost reduction and standardization of some key components.
