Modelling of the thermal environment and subsystem for a 6U cubesat in GTO orbit

Abstract: The thermal design of the spacecraft ensures the unobstructed and smoothoperation of the spacecraft under the harsh space conditions. As small satellitesare getting more accessible and standardized, their uses are growing more intomission scenarios which are conventionally used by larger satellites. High altitudeorbits are generally used by satellites which will need higher ground coverage, Deepspace observations,and missions that want to study the radiation belts around theEarth.In this thesis we study the impact of the space environment on a 6U CubeSatin a Highly Elliptical Orbit (HEO) around Earth. The Black Body loading andtemperature graphs of the spacecraft in various orbital seasons, the impact ofloading due to major heat sources and its variation with orbit perturbations, theimpact of orbital inclination and satellite rotation on the loading of the satelliteare studied.The orbital loading simulations are performed in NX space systemsthermal solver to study the loading profile on the spacecraft model, based on whichfurther studies are performed to find possible solutions that can be applicable forthe solution. Foresail-2 mission design is considered for the loading simulation inorbit with Foresail-1 mission as the heritage mission. The thermal solutions henceapplicable for consideration are presented.