EMCORE Corp., a prominent
supplier of compound semiconductor-based components and subsystems for use in
the fiber optics and space solar power markets, announced that ATK (NYSE:ATK)
has awarded a contract to the company for the design and manufacture solar
panels to be installed on NASA’s InSight Mars Lander. The mission is slated for
launch in March of 2016, and will be managed by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
(JPL).
The solar panels will
feature EMCORE’s most cutting edge ZTJ triple-junction solar cells and will
provide power to the InSight spacecraft. The Lander will be constructed and
operated by Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company in Denver. ATK will manage
the synergy of its legacy-designed UltraFlex solar arrays and EMCORE’s solar
panels for the final flight configuration of the spacecraft.
InSight (Interior
Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport) is a NASA
Discovery Program mission that will transport a single geophysical lander from
Earth to the surface of Mars in order to study its deep interior. InSight will
also serve as a terrestrial planet explorer that will lead to the discovery of
the processes that formed the rocky planets.
“Missions of this magnitude
require extremely high reliability and proven performance,” said David Messner,
Vice President and General Manager of Solar Arrays and Deployables for ATK’s
Space Components division. “We are pleased to be partnering with EMCORE again,
this time to support the exploration of the Martian surface for Lockheed Martin
and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory as part of the exciting Mars InSight
program.”
“This contract with ATK is a
very important award for EMCORE, and we are honored once again to contribute to
NASA’s next mission to Mars,” said Dr. Brad Clevenger, Executive Vice President
and General Manager of EMCORE’s Photovoltaics Division. “EMCORE has partnered
with ATK on many successful programs and has supported several high-profile
NASA-JPL missions including the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) that carried the
rover ‘Curiosity’ to Mars.”
“EMCORE is in the process of
delivering solar panels for several other NASA missions including the Green
Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM) with ATK,” added Navid Fatemi, Vice
President of Business Development for EMCORE Photovoltaics. “We greatly value
our long-standing business relationship with ATK and look forward to another
successful partnership with ATK on NASA’s Insight Mars Lander mission.”
EMCORE is one of the world’s
leading manufacturers of highly-efficient radiation-hard solar cells for space
power applications. With a Beginning-Of-Life (BOL) conversion efficiency
nearing 30% and the option for a patented, onboard monolithic bypass diode,
EMCORE’s industry-leading multi-junction solar cells provide the highest levels
of performance to interplanetary spacecraft and earth orbiting satellites.
For further information,
please visit www.emcore.com
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