Author: Arnaud Trouche

In June 2024, the Artenum team presented two significant papers at the Spacecraft Charging and Technology Conference (SCTC) in Avignon, France. This international forum is dedicated to the science and technology of spacecraft electrical charging by the space environment, covering a broad spectrum of topics on spacecraft interactions with charged particles and their environmental impacts.

Validation of Internal Charging Risk Analysis within the PAGER Framework

The PAGER project, funded by EU Horizon 2020, focuses on simulating and forecasting space weather to predict geomagnetic storms and radiation effects, providing risk evaluations for spacecraft operators. Utilizing advanced tools like SpaceSuite, EDGE, SPIS-SC, SPIS-IC, MoORa, ICOne, and SCOne, the project models the risk of charging depending on the results of the space weather forecast..

The talk focused on the use of these tools to identify the risks of IESD (Internal Electro Static Discharge) between August and December 2015. Four of the six identified risks are observed in-flight IESD anomalies.

The PAGER website and the SpaceSuite Charging Forecast website are today the reference services for space-weather charging risk prediction service in Europe.

Exploring Charging Mechanisms in Polar Earth Orbits (PEO) Using SPIS

This study investigates the complex charging mechanisms experienced by satellites in Polar Earth Orbits (PEO) using the SPIS simulation tool. It examines deep negative charging events observed in missions like the Swedish/German FREJA, US/DMSP, and CNES/JASON-3, particularly during auroral activities and high-energy electron precipitations.

The Swedish Freja mission provided valuable insights into plasma environments in polar regions, highlighting significant charging events and their implications. The study analyzed various spacecraft configurations, revealing the crucial impact of hot electron populations on charging behaviors. It also explored the role of materials, such as Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), on spacecraft potential, emphasizing the importance of accurately characterizing Secondary Emission Yield (SEY) properties to mitigate charging risks.

This research enhances our understanding of spacecraft charging dynamics in PEO, contributing to safer and more reliable space missions and especially for communication constellations.in PEO/LEO.

At RADSHIELD 2024, an event dedicated to mapping the current state of the art in radiation shielding for space applications, Artenum presented their innovative talk “SpaceSuite Radiation Analysis Tools with GEANT4: From Radiation and Single Event Analysis to Space-Weather Driven Internal Charging Risk Forecast“. This conference aims to define future research areas, covering both traditional and novel shielding techniques essential for upcoming space missions.

Artenum presented tools modelling the effects of the space environment on space systems. With the advent of new missions, there is a heightened need for advanced 3D internal charging analysis, cumulative dose process and Single Event Effects (SEE/SEU) prediction in electronic devices. The comprehensive suite of SpaceSuite tools, designed for ease of use and interoperability, addresses these needs through innovative applications.

This presentation at RADSHIELD 2024 underscores Artenum’s commitment to advancing radiation analysis and forecasting tools, providing crucial support for the safe and efficient design of future space missions.

On June 5, 2024, at the International Magnetosphere Coupling IV (IMC-IV) workshop, a pivotal presentation titled “Advanced Charging Risk Forecast Service, further beyond H2020/PAGER” was delivered. This event brought together leading researchers to delve into the intricacies of the magnetosphere system, examining how solar disturbances can propagate to the magnetosphere, alter plasma and wave distributions, and ultimately influence the ionosphere and upper atmosphere.

Artenum’s presentation highlighted the advancements in forecasting services developed as part of and beyond the H2020/PAGER project. These services aim to enhance the prediction of charging risks posed to space assets by solar activity. The focus was on improving the accuracy and reliability of forecasting tools to better protect satellites and other space infrastructure from the detrimental effects of space weather.

The IMC-IV workshop serves as a crucial forum for experts to share insights and foster collaborations, ultimately advancing our understanding of the interconnected space environment. The discussion of these advanced forecasting services underscores the importance of continual innovation in space weather prediction to safeguard our growing reliance on space-based technologies.

A new whitepaper titled “Total Ionizing Dose Analysis with EDGE/SSAM of 1U and 6U CubeSats in Interplanetary Environment” by B. Tezenas du Montcel et al is available. The paper details the use of the Sector Shielding Analysis Module (SSAM) within the ExtendeD GDML Editor (EDGE) software to estimate the Total Ionizing Dose (TID) on CubeSats.

The study confirms SSAM’s accuracy by comparing its results with other dose calculation software, validating its effectiveness in modeling radiation effects. An example application on a 1U CubeSat demonstrates SSAM’s versatility. It highlights the challenges of the space environment, including risks from energetic particles affecting spacecraft. Artenum’s SpaceSuite tools, such as SPIS-SC, SPIS-IC, EDGE, and SEE-U, are designed to address these challenges by simulating various radiation effects.

This publication provides a robust solution for estimating radiation doses on CubeSats, which is crucial for the design and validation of space missions.

The Artenum team is proud to present tools modelling the Multipactor effect at the Multipactor seminar organised by CNES at Toulouse.

This talk will present:

• Iris-SEY which models the multipactor effect in an iris geometry
• The ECSS Multipactor Tool V2 which implements the required models and margins defined in the ECSS Multipactor standard document to know if an RF system can be used in-flight without extra testing

The Artenum team is presenting two talks about SpaceSuite at the 4th Applied Science Environment Conference in Huntsville Alabama.

A next step after PAGER: the Advanced Charging Risk Forecast Service

Presents our results regarding our service modelling the risks of both the surface and internal charging effect connected to space weather forecast models.

SpaceSuite, The self-consistent toolbox for space environment effects analysis

Presents our tools able to model the effects of the space environment, in particular SEE-U to model SEU cross sections for heavy ions and protons (low and high energy) and in-situ Software Error Rate (SER) for realist CAD spacecraft.

The SpaceSuite team is glad to participate to the RADECS conference in Montpellier, from September 16th to 20th.

We invite you to join us at our booth number 20 on the industrial exhibit.

New products and services on radiation and single events effects analysis will be presented.

The New Year is coming and the SpaceSuite team would like to propose a spring session for the “SPIS Training – Focus on Electric Propulsion”. This course will be held from March 25th to March 27th, 2019 at ONERA Toulouse (France).

This course will mainly focus on the modelling of electrical thruster plumes, including their effects on space systems, and the new capabilities of the last SPIS Release candidate version 6.0.0 available on SPIS website website, aka SPIS-EP.

The course is articulated into complementary subparts:

• Because electrical thruster modelling involves complex processes and detailed physics, a first part will aim to speed up the learning curve of new SPIS users, master the specificities of spacecraft surface charging modeling at GEO and LEO, and push further the understanding of the underlying physics
•  Present in details the modelling capabilities related to electric propulsion effects of SPIS-EP and introduce to the related physical processes. Examples of application cases on Hall-effect thrusters will be presented and discussed in more details

The course will associate theoretical presentations and detailed practical works. This training is dedicated to both new and experienced SPIS users. However, it is outlined that involved mechanisms require a good knowledge in plasma physics and in the use of SPIS is strongly recommended.

This session will take place at ONERA Toulouse
2 avenue Edouard Belin,
31000 Toulouse
FRANCE

Also note that for this training course, an early bird discount will be offered. Any registration ordered before the 11th of February 2019 will benefit from a 10% discount. Registration will be closed on the 11th of March 2019.

Please note that in order to provide a quality training with more instructor-student interaction, the total number of attendees per session is limited. Fee reductions are offered for group registration of several students to the same session, provided that they are submitted on the same order. The fee includes lunches, coffee breaks and access to computers for the training. Travelling and accommodation are at the student’s expense.

Feel free to contact us to obtain our Detailed Offer and Pricing (DOP) document.

Important dates:

Early bird registration deadline	February 11, 2019
Registration deadline	March 11, 2019
Training dates	March 25-27, 2019

This is the back-to-school season and the SpaceSuite / SPIS-Services team would like to propose a winter session for the “SPIS Hands-On and application to GEO/LEO”. This SPIS GEO/LEO course will be held on the 3rd and 4th of December 2018 at ONERA Toulouse (France).

The aim of this course is to introduce new users to the SPIS software and master the specifics required for modelling spacecraft charging in GEO and LEO environment. It offers a deeper focus on setting numerical global parameters for a finer control and optimisation of the simulation, especially in GEO and LEO environments. Basic knowledge on plasma physics, space environment and scientific computing are prerequisites for this training.

In the frame of this session, a special attention will be put on the modelling of cubesats and small structures in LEO. Specific practical works will be proposed.

This session will take place at ONERA Toulouse
2 avenue Edouard Belin,
31000 Toulouse
FRANCE

Also note that for this training course, an early bird discount will be offered. Any registration ordered before the 28th of October 2018 will benefit from a 10% discount. Registration will be closed on the 25th of November 2018.

Please note that in order to provide a quality training with more instructor-student interaction, the total number of attendees per session is limited. Fee reductions are offered for group registration of several students to the same session, provided that they are submitted on the same order. The fee includes lunches, coffee breaks and access to computers for the training. Travelling and accommodation are at the student’s expense.

Feel free to contact us to obtain our Detailed Offer and Pricing (DOP) document.

Important dates:

Early bird registration deadline	October 28, 2018
Registration deadline	November 25, 2018
Training dates	December 03-04, 2018