Preliminary Thermal Analysis of the Sport Microsatellite

Abstract

This work presents the preliminary thermal analysis of the SPORT microsatellite, based on its initial configuration. A simplified analysis, using control volumes, is conducted, considering the power dissipated by the equipment and solar radiation as heat sources. Internal conduction and radiation processes between components, as well as radiation into space, are also taken into account. A system of ordinary differential equations is constructed and solved using a simple time-marching method. The results are presented as the average temperatures of the components over a 24-h period and are compared with the numerical simulation of the definitive configuration performed by CFD. The main objective is to apply a quick and simplified version of the thermal lumped method to identify which elements may exceed temperature limits during operation, using the results to adjust the design where those limits are not met. The results are compared with CFD data for the final configuration, showing that the overall temperature behavior is consistent, and that all elements remained below the temperature limits. This validates the use of the methodology in the early phases of nanosatellite design, though some improvements may still be required.