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Collect your Genesis
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Genesis spacecraft in collection
configuration
| The Genesis spacecraft opened for collection
of solar wind. |
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This artist's conception of the
Genesis spacecraft shows it in full operational mode,
opened up to collect and store samples of solar wind particles.
The cover of the science canister, shown on the right,
contains one set of collection materials. It is the same
kind of hexagonal silicon wafer array that comprises the
stack of four arrays that were rotated out of the interior
of the canister when the spacecraft began to orbit L1.
The bottom three of the stacked arrays are controlled
independently, and may be rotated out from the cover of
the top of the stack to collect particular types of solar
wind. Inside the canister is an electrostatic concentrator
to increase the collection of light-weight solar wind
particles. It is exposed when the array stack is rotated
out. The two solar panels, shown in blue in this drawing,
which extend to the side of the spacecraft bus, provide
electrical energy for the functions performed by the rest
of the spacecraft. The two balls, shown in pink in this
drawing, which sit at the sides of the spacecraft contain
fuel for the small thruster rockets that maintain the
Genesis spacecraft's orientation facing the sun during
its collection phase. |
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