Thermo/Opto/Mechanical Analysis of Large Apertures for Exoplanet Detection Using Cielo

摘要

The next generation of space telescopes will be designed to meet increasingly challenging science goals. The operating environment and required precision of these telescopes will make complete verification via ground tests impossible, and will place a greater reliance on numerical simulation. The current state of the art in thermal, mechanical and optical modeling involves three disparate computational models, several analysis codes and tools to transition results between these models. However, the active controls necessary to meet the next generation of requirements for space telescopes will require integrated thermal, structural, optical and controls analysis. To meet these challenges, JPL has developed Cielo, an in-house finite element tool capable of multi-physics simulations using a common finite element model, for thermal, structural and optical aberration analysis. In this paper, we will discuss the use of Cielo for analysis of a coronagraph and an occulter designed to observe Earth-like planets around nearby stars. We will compare thermal and structural results from Cielo with results from commercial off the shelf (COTS) tools to verify the new approach. We will perform variations of key parameters to demonstrate how margins and uncertainties can be quantified using the new approach.