Charging Behaviour of Solar Panel Polyimide Components during Satellite Eclipse Events in Geostationnary Radiation Environment

This paper presents experimental results carried out in the SIRENE irradiation test facility, installed at ONERA (Toulouse, France), on stacked polyimide / adhesive structures used on solar panels. This study aims at following the evolution of the charging potential built up at the surface of these structures during an eclipse event in geostationary orbit. We have been able to demonstrate that temperature and light radiation strongly affect charging levels and kinetics and that the presence of adhesive strongly steers these parameters.