Advanced Photovoltaic and Electronic Experiments - APEX

APEX Description:

The DoD Space Test Program's Advanced Photovoltaic And Electronic Experiments (APEX) satellite was launched on the Pegasus air-launched booster in August of 1994. It carried three Department of Defense experiments which were designed to test the effects of space exposure and radiation on solar arrays and electronic circuits. It was the last Pegasus mission to use the B-52 carrier aircraft.

The primary experiment on APEX is known as the Photovoltaic Array Space Power Plus Diagnostics (PASP-PLUS) experiment. PASP-PLUS was developed by the Geophysics Directorate of the Air Force Phillips Laboratory (now the Air Force Research Laboratory ) to provide a space test and demonstration of 12 advanced photovoltaic arrays.

Two secondary experiments were also flown. The Cosmic Ray Upset Experiment was sponsored by the Air Force's Space Systems Division (now Space and Missile Systems Center) and developed by the Goddard Space Flight Center. The Thin-film Ferroelectric Experiment (FERRO) was developed by the Naval Postgraduate School .

These experiments were flown on a PegaStar spacecraft bus developed for STP by the Orbital Sciences Corporation. Systems Engineering support to the Air Force for the APEX Mission was provided by The Aerospace Corporation.

Further information about the mission and the satellite may be found using the hyper-links shown below.

APEX Information:

USSPACECOM Catalog No.: 23191
International Designation Code: 1994-046-A
Orbit: 349 x 1,823 km, 69.9°

APEX Technical Papers:

The Space Test Program APEX Mission Satellite by Frank Knight
(Technical Paper for the 1992 Conference on Small Satellites at Utah State University - PDF format.)

The Space Test Program APEX Mission Satellite - Flight Results by Frank Knight
(Technical Paper for the 1996 Conference on Small Satellites at Utah State University - PDF format.)

On-Orbit NiH2 Battery Performance and Problem Solving on The APEX Spacecraft by Matt Machlis
(Technical Paper for the 1996 Conference on Small Satellites at Utah State University - PDF format.)

APEX Photo Gallery:

Click on the picture to explore the Photo Gallery.

APEX Deployment Video:

Click on the picture to download Capt. Mike Van Riet's Launch & Deployment Animation.

World Wide Web Information Concerning APEX:

Single Event Effects on Commercial Srams and Power MOSFETS: Final Results of the CRUX Flight Experiment on APEX by John Adolphsen and Janet Barth, by John Adolphsen, & George Gee

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Patches:

APEX Patch	PASP Patch	CRUX Patch

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APEX's "Sister" Spacecraft: