The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has completed test deployment of the solar array installed on its fourth Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite – R series.
The GOES-U solar array, which was built by Lockheed Martin, effectively deployed during a zero-gravity simulation at the company’s facility in Littleton, Colorado, NASA announced Wednesday.
The solar system consists of five panels, each measuring 13 feet tall and 4.5 feet wide. The array, which weighs approximately 45 pounds, is folded upon the launch of GOES-U and unfurls to form a single wing when the satellite reaches geostationary orbit.
The system is expected to produce more than 5,000 watts of electricity, enough to power the entire satellite.
GOES-U is the final satellite in the GOES-R program, which is a collaborative project between NASA and NOAA. The agencies plan to launch the spacecraft in April 2024.
