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Experiment: AO054

Experiment Title: Space Plasma High-Voltage Drainage Experiment

Original Principal Investigator(s): Yaung, Dr. Jim - Invest. Role: Present, Komatsu, G. - Invest. Role: Original, Taylor, W.L. - Invest. Role: Original,

Experiment Description:

Thin dielectric films are frequently employed as the coating materials for solar arrays and in thermal control applications. These films are subject to electric stress as a result of either voluntary or involuntary actions. For solararray applications, the presence of array voltages causes electric stress across the dielectric film and to the space plasma, with resultant current drainage from the plasma to the array cells. As array voltages are raised, electric stress and current drainage levels also rise and may impact array operation and efficiency. For both thermal control coating materials and array coating materials on spacecraft immersed in energetic particle environments in space, involuntary charge buildup occurs and results in both transient and steady-state current drainages that may impact spacecraft operation. TRW's SP-HVDE on LDEF provides the first in-flight investigation of current through biased dielectric films.

Associated Tray(s) Tray Location: D10 - Orientation: 21.9 degrees off ram incidence angle, Tray Location: B04 - Orientation: 158.1 degrees off ram incidence angle

Photograph Classification: Flight

Associated Photograph(s):
LaRC - L90-10407
KSC - None
JSC - S32-77-027
LaRC - L92-17647
KSC - KSC-390C-730.08
JSC - None
LaRC - L84-07086
KSC - KSC-384C-221.04
JSC - None
LaRC - L90-10439
KSC - None
JSC - S32-78-062
LaRC - L90-13393
KSC - KSC-390C-1029.07
JSC - None
LaRC - L84-07065
KSC - KSC-384C-193.07
JSC - None


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