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Title: Radiation-hard breadboard star tracker. Final report

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:5885990

Operation in a radiation environment affects the performance of many types of electro-optical sensors. Specifically, noise generated from radiation in the detector and front-end electronics in star trackers can degrade the performance of the sensors. Upsets in the related processing electronics can cause loss of track, data interruptions, and in some cases, failure to recover. Degradation of performance can occur in a natural charged-particle environment and becomes worse in a weapon-enhanced radiation environment. High total dose results in component and, in turn, system failure to operate. The objectives of this program, which was conducted by Ball Aerospace Systems Division (BASD) for the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), were to develop a tracker that could survive a high total dose and to gain a better understanding of the transient effects of radiation on the star tracker performance. Survivability of the star tracker in a radiation environment, both at the component level and at the system level, is of primary importance.

Research Organization:
Ball Aerospace Systems Div., Boulder, CO (USA)
OSTI ID:
5885990
Report Number(s):
AD-A-162777/7/XAB
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English