LISA propulsion module separation study

The Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission is a space-borne gravitational wave detector consisting of three sciencecraft in heliocentric orbit. Each sciencecraft is delivered to its operational orbit by a propulsion module. Because of the strict thermal and mass balancing requirements of LISA, the baseline mission concept requires that the propulsion module separate from the sciencecraft after delivery. The only propulsion system currently included in the sciencecraft design are micronewton level thrusters, such as field emission electric propulsion (FEEP) or colloid thrusters, that are used to balance the 30–40 µN of solar radiation pressure and provide the drag-free and attitude control of the sciencecraft. Due to these thrusters' limited authority, the separation of the propulsion module from the sciencecraft must be well controlled to not induce a large tip-off rotation of the sciencecraft. We present here the results of a study of the propulsion module separation system requirements that are necessary to safely deliver the three LISA sciencecraft to their final operational orbits.