Ariel is the M4 mission of the ESA’s Cosmic Vision Program 2015-2025, whose aim is to characterize by lowresolution transit spectroscopy the atmospheres of over one thousand warm and hot exoplanets orbiting nearby stars. It has been selected by ESA in March 2018 and adopted in November 2020 to be flown, then, in 2029. It is the first survey mission dedicated to measuring the chemical composition and thermal structures of the atmospheres of hundreds of transiting exoplanets, in order to enable planetary science far beyond the boundaries of the Solar System. The Payload (P/L) is based on a cold section (PLM – Payload Module) working at cryogenic temperatures and a warm section, located within the Spacecraft (S/C) Service Vehicle Module (SVM) and hosting five warm units operated at ambient temperature (253-313 K). The P/L and its electrical, electronic and data handling architecture has been designed and optimized to perform transit spectroscopy from space during primary and secondary planetary eclipses in order to achieve a large set of unbiased observations to shed light and fully understand the nature of exoplanets atmospheres, retrieving information about planets interior and determining the key factors affecting the formation and evolution of planetary systems.
ARIEL (Atmospheric Remote-sensing InfraRed Large-survey) is the fourth medium-class mission (M4) of the European Space Agency, part of the Cosmic Vision program, whose launch is planned by late 2029. ARIEL aims to study the composition of exoplanet atmospheres, their formation and evolution. The ARIEL’s target will be a sample of about 1000 planets observed with one or more of the following methods: transit, eclipse and phase-curve spectroscopy, in both visible and infrared light. The scientific payload is composed by a reflective telescope having a 1m-class elliptical primary mirror, built in solid Aluminum, and two focal-plane instruments: FGS and AIRS. FGS (Fine Guidance System)3 has the double purpose of performing photometry (0.50-0.55 µm) and low resolution spectrometry over three bands (from 0.8 to 1.95 µm) and, simultaneously, to provide data to the spacecraft AOCS (Attitude and Orbit Control System). AIRS (ARIEL InfraRed Spectrometer) instrument will perform IR spectrometry in two wavelength ranges: between 1.95 and 3.9 µm (with a spectral resolution R > 100) and between 3.9 and 7.8 µm with a spectral resolution R > 30. This paper provides the status of the ICU (Instrument Control Unit), an electronic box whose purpose is to command and supply power to the AIRS warm front-end (as well as acquire science data from its two channels) and to command and control the TCU (Telescope Control Unit).
PLATO (PLAnetary Transits and Oscillations of stars) is the ESA’s third medium-class mission (M3), adopted in 2017 under the Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 program after selection in 2014. Set for launch in 2026 from French Guiana’s Kourou, its primary goal is to discover and provide an initial bulk characterization of diverse exoplanets, including rocky ones, orbiting bright solar-type stars. Operating from a halo orbit around L2, 1.5 million km from Earth, PLATO’s Payload consists of 26 telescopes (24 normal, 2 fast) capturing images every 25 seconds and 2.5 seconds, respectively. These work in tandem with the AOCS (S/C Attitude and Orbit Control System). Each camera comprises four CCDs, yielding 20.3 MP images—81.4 MP per normal camera and 2.11 gigapixels overall. The onboard P/L Data Processing System (DPS) handles this huge data volume, employing Normal and Fast DPUs along with a single ICU. The ICU manages data compression, overseeing the P/L through a SpaceWire network. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the Instrument Control Unit’s (ICU) status following the rigorous performance test conducted on the Engineering Model (EM) and its evolution during the development phases of the Engineering Qualification Model (EQM) and Proto-Flight Model (PFM). The content delineates the outcomes derived from the extensive performance test executed on the Engineering Model (EM), detailing the meticulous activities undertaken during the Assembly, Integration, and Verification (AIT/AIV) processes of the EQM. Additionally, it explains the status of the Proto-Flight Model (PFM), offering insights into its development path.
ARIEL (Atmospheric Remote-sensing InfraRed Large-survey) is a medium-class mission of the European Space Agency, part of the Cosmic Vision program, whose launch is foreseen by early 2029. ARIEL aims to study the composition of exoplanet atmospheres, their formation and evolution. The ARIEL’s target will be a sample of about 1000 planets observed with one or more of the following methods: transit, eclipse and phase-curve spectroscopy, at both visible and infrared wavelengths simultaneously. The scientific payload is composed by a reflective telescope having a 1m-class elliptical primary mirror, built in solid Aluminium, and two focal-plane instruments: FGS and AIRS. FGS (Fine Guidance System)1 has the double purpose, as suggested by its name, of performing photometry (0.50-0.55 μm) and low resolution spectrometry over three bands (from 0.8 to 1.95 µm) and, simultaneously, to provide data to the spacecraft AOCS (Attitude and Orbit Control System) with a cadence of 10 Hz and contributing to reach a 0.02 arcsec pointing accuracy for bright targets. AIRS (ARIEL InfraRed Spectrometer) instrument will perform IR spectrometry in two wavelength ranges: between 1.95 and 3.9 μm (with a spectral resolution R < 100) and between 3.9 and 7.8 μm with a spectral resolution R < 30. This paper provides the status of the ICU (Instrument Control Unit), an electronic box whose purpose is to command and supply power to AIRS (as well as acquire science data from its two channels) and to command and control the TCU (Telescope Control Unit).
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