ATHENA - System studies and optics accommodation

摘要

Athena is currently in Phase A, with a view to adoption upon a successful Mission Adoption Review in 2019/2020. After a brief presentation of the reference spacecraft (SC) design, this paper will focus on the functional and environmental requirements, the thermo-mechanical design and the Assembly, Integration, Verification & Test (AIVT) considerations related to housing the Silicon Pore Optics (SPO) Mirror Modules (MM) in the very large Mirror Assembly Module (MAM). Initially functional requirements on the MM accommodation are presented, with the Effective Area and Half Energy Width (HEW) requirements leading to a MAM comprising (depending on final mirror size selected) between ～700-1000 MMs, co-aligned with exquisite accuracy to provide a common focus. A preliminary HEW budget allocated across the main error-contributors is presented, and this is then used as a reference to derive subsequent requirements and engineering considerations, including: The procedures and technologies for MM-integration into the Mirror Structure (MS) to achieve the required alignment accuracies in a timely manner; stiffness requirements and handling scheme required to constrain deformation under gravity during x-ray testing; temperature control to constrain thermo-elastic deformation during flight; and the role of the Instrument Switching Mechanism (ISM) in constraining HEW and Effective Area errors. Next, we present the key environmental requirements of the MMs, and the need to minimise shock-loading of the MMs is stressed. Methods to achieve this are presented, including: Selection of a large Ø clamp-band launch vehicle interface (LV I/F); lengthening of the shock-path from the LV I/F to the MAM I/F; modal-tuning of the MAM to act as a low-pass filter during launch shock events; use of low-shock HDRMs for the MAM; and the possibility to deploy a passive vibration solution at the LV I/F to reduce loads.