Northrop Grumman has been delivering space mechanisms for stowing and articulating spacecraft payloads and solar arrays for 40+ years with 100% mission success and our modular actuators are represented on over 50 missions. Our designs specialize in: Mechanisms to deploy structure or to spool cables.

Northrop Grumman has been delivering space mechanisms for stowing and articulating spacecraft payloads and solar arrays for 40+ years with 100% mission success and our modular actuators are represented on over 50 missions. Our designs specialize in: Mechanisms to deploy structure or to spool cables.

Northrop Grumman invented and flight-qualified the UltraFlex solar array to provide a leap forward in specific power (W/kg) and stowed power density (W/m3) from competing state-of-the-art arrays. Using innovative packaging and deployment methods, the wing stows to a much smaller volume and footprint on the spacecraft.

Utilizes a telescoping boom system to deploy an accordion-folded flexible solar array blanket, enabling a compact stowage volume that creates enough space for multiple spacecraft to be launched aboard a single rocket.

Jan 1, 2024 · Space deployable structures are able to be deployed from a folded state to a predetermined or desired configuration. They are superior in terms of spatial packaging ratio, controllability, and structural complexity, in order to solve the …

Classical solar arrays are based on hinged panels for “accordion type” deployment. Small spacecraft require lighter arrays with higher packaging efficiency.

Northrop Grumman is the industry leader in the design, development, and production of unique and turnkey solar array systems that provide electrical power to spacecraft systems. Photovoltaic subassemblies feature the latest technologies to weld or solder with robotic automation, connecting solar cells into circuits up to six feet in length.

Our lightweight arrays have powered a variety of critical missions, including: Photovoltaic subassemblies feature the latest technologies to weld or solder with robotic automation, connecting solar cells into circuits up to six feet in length. The solder connection is non-lead, high temperature capable, and superior to welds.

One solar panel that should be able to deliver this amount of power is the MegaFlex from Northrop Grumman (formerly ATK), which is foldable and unfolds into a round panel by rotating 360°, as...

May 1, 1995 · This paper describes a Solar Array Deployment Mechanism (SADM) used to deploy a rigid solar array panel on a commercial spacecraft. The application required a deployment mechanism design that was not only lightweight, but also could be produced and installed at the lowest possible cost.