Coarse Sun Sensor (Cosine Type)
Adcole Space (Redwire)
A single-detector analog sun sensor using the cosine principle for solar array pointing, sun acquisition, and fail-safe recovery. Over 1,000 units deployed since the 1960s across hundreds of spacecraft.
Typed specifications14 values
Discloses 3 of 8 fields engineers filter by in this category (category median 4).
- Mass
- 10 g NOMINAL · datasheet p.1 10 g nominal (0.353 oz) | 10 g nom.
- Envelope (L×W×H)
- 2.8 CM X 1.9 CM X 1.2 CM datasheet p.1
- Output type
- analog peak output 500 μA to 1300 μA · datasheet p.1
- Supply voltage
- 9–36 V datasheet p.1
- Radiation tolerance (TID)
- 100 krad datasheet p.1 100 krad > | 100 krad min · rad hard >100 krad (Si)
- Export status
- EAR ECCN 7A104; export licence required · datasheet p.1
- Sensor class
- coarse datasheet p.1
- Flight heritage
- GRAIL, Mars Phoenix, GPM, GPIM, LRO/LCROSS, WISE, Kepler, SDO, EMM (Hope), Worldview, Fermi (GLAST), MRO, Deep Impact, Swift, Classified Programs datasheet p.2
- Sensing element
- photodiode (cosine) single detector, approximate cosine response · datasheet p.1
- Output current at normal incidence
- 0.5–1.3 mA peak output · datasheet p.1
Each value is typed with its unit and measurement condition and cites the datasheet page it was taken from. Nothing is guessed: a field that is absent here has not been published by the manufacturer. machine-extracted ✓ checked by NewSpace Market ✓ manufacturer confirmed by the manufacturer.
As published by the supplier8 lines, in the manufacturer's own wording
- Sensor type
- Analog cosine-response photodiode
- Axes
- 1 (single axis per detector)
- Configuration
- Cosine type (single detector)
- Field of view
- Hemispherical (custom baffle options available)
- Output
- Analog current/voltage proportional to cos(angle)
- Flight heritage
- Yes — 1,000+ units flown since 1960s
- Status
- In Production
- Applications
- Solar array pointing, sun acquisition, fail-safe recovery
About
The Adcole Space Coarse Sun Sensor (Cosine Type) is a heritage-proven analog optical detector designed to determine the position of the sun relative to the spacecraft. Operating on the cosine law principle, the photodiode output is proportional to the cosine of the angle between the sensor boresight and incident sunlight, providing a continuous analog signal for spacecraft attitude operations.
With more than 1,000 Adcole analog solar sensors deployed on hundreds of spacecraft since the 1960s, this sensor brings exceptional flight heritage to any mission. It is used for solar array pointing, sun acquisition, and fail-safe recovery operations — critical functions for virtually every orbiting spacecraft.
The sensor offers approximate cosine and conical symmetry field-of-view (FOV) capabilities, and custom baffles can be designed to restrict the FOV for nearly any unique mission requirement. The design is compact, passive (no power required for detection), and highly reliable for missions ranging from Earth orbit to deep space.
Adcole Space (a Redwire company) offers the Coarse Sun Sensor as a standalone unit or in multi-detector pyramid configurations for two-axis sun angle measurement. The sensor has supported landmark missions including OSIRIS-REx, GPS constellation satellites, and the Parker Solar Probe.
Documentation
Need the full ICD, test reports or a specific revision? Ask the supplier directly.