Continuous Solar Simulator for Concentrator Photovoltaic Systems

in Proceedings of the 25th European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference (2010, September)

SWAP: Sun watcher with a new EUV telescope on a technology demonstration platform

in 5th International Conference on Space Optics (2004, June 01)

SWAP (SWAP (Sun Watcher using Active Pixel System detector and Image Processing) is an instrument that has been selected to fly on the PROBA-2 technology demonstration platform, a program of the European ... [more ▼]

SWAP (SWAP (Sun Watcher using Active Pixel System detector and Image Processing) is an instrument that has been selected to fly on the PROBA-2 technology demonstration platform, a program of the European Space Agency (ESA) to be launched in 2006. SWAP is based on an off-axis degraded Ritchey Chretien telescope that will image the EUV solar corona at 19.5 nm on a specifically fabricated extreme ultraviolet (EUV) sensitivity enhanced CMOS APS detector. The optical design and the optical coatings are derived from the Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (EIT) operating on-board SOHO since 1995. It has been adapted for a single wavelength telescope with off-axis optics. It allows to use smaller optics and filters, with simple internal baffles avoiding external protruding parts. The superpolished optics will receive a multilayer coating that provides spectral selection centred on 19.5 nm and EUV reflectivity in normal incidence. This compact design is specifically adapted for accommodation on PROBA-2, where mass and envelope requirements are very stringent The SWAP PROBA-2 program will be an opportunity to demonstrate this new optical concept, while it will also validate space remote sensing with APS detectors, as well as on-board image processing capabilities. On the science outcomes, SWAP will provide solar corona images in the Fe XII line on a baselined 2-min cadence. Observations with this specific wavelength allow detecting phenomena, such as solar flares or 'EIT-waves', associated with the early phase of coronal mass ejections. The SWAP data will complement the observations provided by SOHO-EIT, and STEREO-SECCHI. [less ▲]