Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory’s (LLNL) space hardware team has delivered a payload for NASA’s Pathfinder Technology Demonstrator-R (PTD-R) satellite. LLNL developed the optical payload, called Deep Purple, that utilizes a new design for an ultra-violet (UV) and short-wave infrared (SWIR) monolithic telescope.
The mission will demonstrate simultaneous monolithic UV and SWIR optical sensing from space for the first time via two co-boresighted, 85-mm aperture monolithic telescopes using a new compact custom electronics module and a novel, lightweight, carbon-composite optical housing and radiator. It will demonstrate new possibilities for scientific observations and real-time space domain awareness.
The satellite is scheduled to launch this summer aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-11 mission from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Rideshare provider SEOPS has handled the integration and mission services for the spacecraft.