Nebula Public Library

Radioisotope generators provide electrical power for spacecraft by converting the energy released by the decay of radioisotope fuel into electricity. Non-thermal converters (voltaic devices) make use of the photoelectric effect much in the same way a solar cell does. They are much easier to miniaturise for future chip-sized deep space probes, however performance quickly degrades due to radiation damage.

During this activity, we were able to evaluate our electrochemical system with respect to: (i) silicon anode fabricated at an industrial scale equipment, (ii) pouch cells that were manufactured at different suppliers and tested by Airbus Defence and Space, and (iii) safety protocols.

In addition, we showed that standard graphitic-based chemistry cannot operate at low temperatures. Finally, we evaluated the Cost of Ownership of our products.

Humankind tested its capacity to survive on the Moon’s surface for short periods of time through the Apollo missions almost 50 years ago. Since then, robotic missions to the Moon have spent periods lasting several days and nights on the satellite. However, many technological challenges arise when planning a lunar (robotic and/or manned) mission that is fully operational during the night. Among these challenges, the need for a power supply system for both day and night remains open.

Moving charges produce magnetic fields. Since thermal transients produce an electric current, thermal transients produce magnetic fields. It has been shown that the generation of these magnetic fields in the vicinity of sensitive instruments leads to a degradation of recorded data.

Getting closer to a theoretical solution and to an effective mitigation technique will help magnetic missions in ESA’s Science programme, Earth Observation programme and, in fact, all missions that employ magnetic-sensitive sensors.