NEO Surveyor’s Sunshade Gets Inspected
Description The large sunshade of NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor is mounted on an assembly ring during inspections in a clean room at BAE Systems Space & Mission Systems in Boulder, Colorado, in July 2026. The sunshade structure stands 20 feet (6 meters) tall and measures 8 feet (2.4 meters) wide at its base. Its two flat […]
NEO Surveyor's sunshade has undergone a thorough inspection at BAE Systems Space & Mission Systems in Boulder, Colorado. The sunshade, measuring 20 feet tall and 8 feet wide at its base, features two flat panels joined at a 23.5-degree angle. This panel, equipped with 864 interconnected solar cells, is capable of generating up to 2 kilowatts of power.
The specialized solar array was built by Applied Aerospace in Stockton, California, and was outfitted with its solar cells by SolAero Technologies in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The sunshade and solar array underwent environmental testing at a commercial thermal vacuum testing facility in El Segundo, California, before being delivered to BAE Systems Space & Mission Systems in May, ahead of schedule.
Once in space, NEO Surveyor will search for asteroids and comets, including those positioned in the direction of the Sun, where ground-based telescopes face challenges. More information about the mission can be found at the provided link.
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- NEO Surveyor’s Sunshade Gets Inspected science.nasa.gov
