Flight Demonstration of Spinnaker Dragsails for SmallSat Deorbit

The Spinnaker product line of dragsails provides a low size, weight, power, and cost (SWaP-C), reliable approach to meeting FCC deorbit requirements, advancing the state of the art for end-of-mission deorbit applications. A passive dragsail approach with a fault tolerant deployment initiation can provide reliable deorbit capability regardless of the host satellite state of health. Spinnaker dragsails offer straightforward integration with the host vehicle, with a simple bolt-on mechanical interface and a single electrical connection. All Spinnaker dragsails employ radiation-hardened electronics and life-tested batteries to ensure reliable deployment after 5 years on-orbit. Sail material is designed to withstand the onorbit environment throughout the deorbit phase, including degradation due to atomic oxygen. The Spinnaker design is required to have an end-to-end reliability of greater than 99% for sail deployment and deorbit operations. The proposed Phase II Sequential effort will enable Vestigo to conduct on-orbit flight demonstrations for Spinnaker2 and Spinnaker3. The flight demonstrations will eliminate a major barrier to market entry, through advancing both Spinnaker dragsail configurations from TRL-6 to TRL-9. For the proposed flight demonstrations, the Spaceflight Sherpa orbital transfer vehicle will provide a launch opportunity to LEO, at an altitude range of 400 - 550 km. The Spinnaker2 dragsail will be hosted by an Astro Digital Corvus-Micro satellite bus. The Spinnaker3 dragsail will be integrated directly with the Sherpa as a captive-carry payload. Engineering images and Spinnaker microcontroller datasets capturing dragsail deployment will be acquired and downlinked from both vehicles.
Benefits: Potential NASA Applications Current NASA programs that can benefit from dragsail technology include the Space Technology Mission Directorate Small Satellite Technology Program, and technology demonstration missions within the NASA Earth Science Technology Office. The Science Mission Directorate Earth Venture program can also utilize dragsails for deorbit capability. NASA spacecraft that utilize low-thrust electric propulsion or natural orbital decay for long-term deorbit, Spinnaker dragsails can be utilized to provide targeted reentry capability. Potential Non-NASA Applications The Spinnaker product line of dragsails is targeted to vehicles with mass of 1,000 kg or less, and orbital altitudes of 1,000 km or less. This target market represents approximately 3,000 vehicles per year over the next five years, including LEO constellations, CubeSats, launch vehicle stages, DARPA and Space Development Agency satellites.