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ABSL Space Products Eyes the Sun
23rd February 2010
ABSL Space Products, a manufacturer of Lithium-ion rechargeable space batteries, celebrates the successful launch of the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) spacecraft on an Atlas V 401 rocket.
LONGMONT, Colorado (Date 11 February 2010) – ABSL Space Products, a manufacturer of Lithium-ion rechargeable space batteries, celebrates the successful launch of the NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) spacecraft on an Atlas V 401 rocket. The spacecraft will be positioned in a Geosynchronous Earth Orbit (GEO), and is powered by ABSL Lithium-ion batteries. SDO will study the sun to help scientists understand the sun’s energy production mechanisms, the interior workings of the sun, and the ways in which energy is stored and released in the sun’s atmosphere.
ABSL’s Lithium-ion battery provides power for the satellite’s flight and scientific instrumentation as the spacecraft travels though the bi-yearly eclipse phases of its geosynchronous orbit over SDO’s 12 year mission goal. SDO will carry ABSL’s largest single module battery flown to date and utilizes ABSL’s heritage architecture to deliver a three deck unit providing 4.5kWh of energy through a 28 volt system.
ABSL’s Lithium-ion space flight experience surpasses every other battery vendor, and the SDO mission is a major flight heritage milestone. The SDO battery is a crucial step for future ABSL business as ABSL continues to expand its Lithium-ion batteries into the commercial and government GEO spacecraft market. ABSL recently delivered Lithium-ion hardware for a United States Government GEO mission and is currently working on a second battery for the same customer. ABSL has already delivered batteries that will fly on Indian GEO spacecraft this year, and also recently received a contract to power a commercial communications GEO satellite.
David Curzon, Project Manager for the SDO Battery, stated “ABSL is very proud to have once again worked closely with NASA and supplied essential hardware in support of this key GEO mission. It is an honor and a privilege to have collaborated with GSFC in contributing to the success of this project.”
In addition to the SDO battery contract, ABSL has delivered four other Lithium-ion battery contracts for NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) missions: Lunar Reconnaissance Obiter (LRO) launched together in 2009 with Lunar CRater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) also powered by ABSL Lithium-ion batteries; Space Technology 5 spacecraft that was launched by NASA in 2006 and now is successfully completed; and Time History of Events Macroscale Interactions during Substorms (THEMIS) launched in 2007. ABSL recently kicked off the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) contract for GSFC which is one of ABSL largest capacity battery systems at over 350Ah.
Kevin Schrantz, ABSL Sales Manager said, “SDO marks ABSL’s longest GEO mission. SDO is rewarding from a technology standpoint as SDO is our largest capacity single module battery to date, but more importantly the SDO battery has paved the way for current and future ABSL GEO programs”.
ABSL Power the Next Generation of SSTL Disaster Monitoring Spacecraft
20th August 2009
On Wednesday 29th July 2009 ABSL celebrated the successful launch of two SSTL Disaster Monitoring Constellation (DMC) Spacecraft – UK-DMC2 and Deimos-1.
ABSL to Provide Battery for SGEO Commercial Geostationary Telecoms Platform
26th June 2009
On 18th June 2009 ABSL were awarded a high-profile, landmark contract to power OHB’s new, small geostationary satellite bus – SGEO. The contract, to supply lithium-ion batteries for the SGEO commercial geostationary telecoms platform, consolidates the development and validation work done at ABSL to demonstrate the capability of the company’s small-cell approach for longer-duration missions. The battery will provide power during eclipse seasons and for electric propulsion throughout the spacecraft’s fifteen year operational lifetime.
Boulder County on the Charge in Search of Earth-like Planets
07th March 2009
ABSL Space Products (ABSL) today celebrates the successful launch of the NASA Kepler spacecraft on a Delta II rocket. The spacecraft, which will hunt for planets the size of our own Earth in other solar systems, is powered by ABSL Lithium-ion batteries. To date, planets more typical of our gas giants like Jupiter and Saturn have been observed. Kepler will open the door to finding new worlds that are much more likely to potentially harbor life.
Older news articles
- ABSL Ships First Hardware from Longmont, Colorado - 09th February 2009
- ABSL receives Master Supplier Award from Astrium Satellites - 09th December 2008
- ESA Select ABSL for Calibration Load Development - 24th November 2008
- ABSL AWARDED CONTRACT FOR 100TH SPACECRAFT BATTERY - 05th November 2008
- ABSL Selected to Supply Infrared Calibration System for SLSTR - 30th July 2008
