{"id":46533,"date":"2021-01-13T07:07:45","date_gmt":"2021-01-12T20:37:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=46533"},"modified":"2021-01-13T07:07:45","modified_gmt":"2021-01-12T20:37:45","slug":"iss-solar-panels-mb1838","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/iss-solar-panels-mb1838\/","title":{"rendered":"New Solar Panels For International Space Station"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"International<\/p>\n

While the International Space Station’s solar arrays are still working pretty well, they are showing their age and NASA will start on an upgrade this year.<\/p>\n

The ISS’s original pair of solar arrays have been operating continuously since December 2000, with additional array pairs delivered in September 2006, June 2007 and March 2009. Designed for a 15 year service life, the arrays’ performance is gradually degrading – which is expected whether a PV installation is in space or it’s solar panels<\/a> on a rooftop here on Earth.<\/p>\n

The eight current arrays are producing up to 160 kilowatts of power during orbital daytime. The ISS sees 16 sunrises and sunsets every day<\/span> and 50 – 60 per cent of what the solar arrays generate is stored in the station\u2019s batteries for use while the station isn’t exposed to sunlight.<\/p>\n

NASA says<\/a> it will be augmenting six of the eight existing power channels of the space station with new solar arrays, which will be larger versions of the Roll-Out Solar Array (ROSA)<\/a> technology that was successfully tested back in 2017.<\/p>\n