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Albuquerque NM (SPX) May 01, 2007 NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory Center has awarded EMCORE Corporation a $2M contract for the design, manufacturing, testing and delivery of fully integrated solar panels for the Mars Cruise Stage spacecraft. This spacecraft is designed to carry the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) rover and communicate with the entry vehicle that will carry the rover to the surface of the planet. The launch of the spacecraft is planned for fall of 2009. Scheduled for delivery in mid 2008, the Mars Cruise Stage solar panels will provide more than 1 kW end-of-life (EOL) power to the spacecraft while operating at a distance of 1.6 Astronomical Units (AU) from the sun. These panels will be powered by EMCORE's latest generation 28.5% efficiency multi- junction solar cells. Production of the solar cells and panels will take place at EMCORE's manufacturing facilities located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. David Danzilio, Vice President and General Manager of EMCORE's PhotoVoltaics Division stated, "We are very pleased to receive this award from JPL and appreciate their confidence in our capability to manufacture and deliver solar panels for this very important space exploration mission. "This solar panel procurement from NASA-JPL confirms EMCORE Photovoltaics position as the leading solar panel supplier for interplanetary missions. Our proven manufacturing capability, technology leadership and highest reliability solar panels in industry make EMCORE the supplier of choice for demanding spacecraft power systems." EMCORE is the world's largest manufacturer of highly efficient radiation hard solar cells for space power applications. With a beginning-of-life (BOL) conversion efficiency of 28.5% and the option for a patented, onboard monolithic bypass diode, EMCORE's industry leading multi-junction solar cells can provide the highest power to interplanetary spacecrafts and earth orbiting satellites. These advanced solar cells have also been adapted for use in terrestrial concentrator applications and have attained conversion efficiencies in excess of 37%. These products will make possible cost competitive concentrating photovoltaic systems for use in utility scale solar power stations. Email This Article
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Paris, France (SPX) Apr 30, 2007Life for an estimated 100,000 people in poverty-stricken rural India has been improved dramatically by several hours of reliable solar-powered lighting every night, made available by a UN-led pilot project to facilitate household financing for solar home systems. |
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