Full wing qualification testing and incremental program update for the solar probe plus array

As the Solar Probe Plus (SPP) program moves into the flight hardware build phase, the final testing of the qualification panel has been completed. The rigorous testing is many orders of magnitude more intensive than that used for standard earth-orbit missions. Testing under high irradiance, high temperature conditions over large areas poses design and logistic challenges, which have spurred innovation in steady state illumination. New test hardware of interest include a large area LED simulator capable of 6X AM0 string currents while the panel is under vacuum, along with an LED light source to supply greater than 22X AM0 string currents while the panel is at atmosphere. In addition, silicone degradation comparison via LED and broadband light sources is presented, along with a novel method to improve the EOL performance of the SPP solar arrays through pre-flight ultraviolet illuminated outgassing.