NEWS & EVENTS

Solar Array Panels Attached to Dawn Spacecraft

This selection of photos shows the attachment and test deployment of one of the two solar array wings performed on the Dawn Spacecraft October 11, 2006. Each solar array wing is 8.3 meters (27 feet) long and is on a yoke that extends about 93 cm (37 inches) from the spacecraft. The solar array converts light from the Sun into electrical power to operate the spacecraft, even when operating at Ceres, 3 times further from the Sun than the Earth.
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