There are not many ways to change the orientation of a spacecraft in space; they are all well known in the industry and have long been proven in practice. Given the specifics of space travel, it seems almost impossible to invent something new that would accomplish this task. But in the coming years, a satellite with an unprecedented precision guidance mechanism will appear in Earth orbit: it will literally shake its solar panels to return.

On Earth, you can push to change your position in space. From everything: the surface you’re standing on, nearby walls, and, in the case of an airplane, the air. But in space, this is difficult.

In Earth orbit, light satellites can be guided by magnetic field lines, a convenient and energy-“cheap” method. It is also possible to make the device rectangular, in which case the Earth’s gravitational field will always return it with the heavier end closer to the planet.

At low orbits, aerodynamic stabilization is available due to the sparse, yet perceptible atmosphere. At higher altitudes and in open space, sunlight and wind pressure can be used. These are all likely opportunities for spacecraft to change direction by “pushing” against something other than themselves. More precise, faster, and more controlled rotation requires sophisticated devices: flywheel engines, as well as liquid, gas, or electric jet engines.

As a rule, spacecraft use combinations of all the listed methods in different versions. But something fundamentally new for guidance systems in cosmonautics has not been used since its inception half a century ago. The rapid growth of a previously unknown American enterprise is even more surprising Samara Aviation.

Russian speakers should not be confused by the name; it has nothing to do with the geography of Russia or the names of the Middle East or South Asia. SAmara winged seed means lioness. The company’s logo has a similar feature because this image reflects the essence of the technology it has developed.

Development concept Samara Aviation below. The small spacecraft is equipped with symmetrical folding solar panels, the sections of which are connected not by rigid hinges but by flexible ones. These flexible hinges are made of piezoelectric material. The current can quickly contract or relax, causing the solar array sections to oscillate relative to the spacecraft’s center of mass. The principle of operation is shown in the video above.

If such oscillations are made at a high frequency, the entire spacecraft becomes a single flywheel engine. Because vibration is the rapid movement of an object over a very small distance. In this way, the solar panels become the same mass that maintains the thrust moment with which the orientation change apparatus is pushed.

What else is interesting from the descriptions? Samara Aviationvibration should not interfere with the operation of high-precision satellite systems. On the contrary, such actuators can compensate for parasitic vibrations from other sources.

It is called technology Multifunctional Structures for Attitude Control (MSAC) — multifunctional structures for orientation management. The startup has already shown its work MSAC Under laboratory conditions and mounted on a pneumatic bearing, the prototype rotated perfectly around a vertical axis. Work on the first phase of technology implementation was funded by the startup accelerator Tech StarsIt ends in early 2024.

Following the success of the prototype, the initiative immediately attracted the attention of public and private investors. In January, the US National Science Foundation (NSF) highlighted Samara Aviation $ 275 thousand support for the creation of a flying prototype. As the portal writes, for the same purposes Space NewsA structure of the US Air Force called SpaceWERX gave a grant of $1.25 million to the initiative. According to the terms of the agreement, this money Samara Aviation A partnership should be established with a company that deals with remote sensing and testing of the Earth. MSAC on one of its satellites.