Design of a Novel Deployable Baffle for a Deployable Space Telescope

Abstract

The need for Earth observation telescopes with high spatial and temporal resolution is constantly increasing, however, current state-of-the-art telescopes are costly. The Deployable Space Telescope project at TU Delft aims to provide a solution with an Earth observation telescope that has the same optical performance as today's best ones, but at a reduced cost. A baffle is required to surround the telescope to provide stable thermal environment, limit stray-light, and protect the optical components from debris. A deployable baffle consisting of pantographic arms has been designed that has only one degree of freedom, therefore the whole structure follows the configuration change if one angle is changed in it, and the diameter and height change happen synchronously, successfully reducing the required number of actuators. The proposed thermal solution decreases the thermal gradients and temperature extremes within the baffle considerably, and successfully shifts the overall temperature of the telescope towards colder regions.