VI. Conclusion and Recommendations

There are many technology elements that must be successfully integrated to enable the realization of membrane optics. Recent efforts have made great progress at demonstrating achievable surface precision in the laboratory, but these gains next need to be translated to demonstrations under relevant loading and environmental conditions. As experiments are moved from the laboratory to operational environments, ongoing attention must still be paid to reducing the areal density and cost of support structures and systems to realize the true potential of membrane-based optics to provide extremely low areal density and low-cost optical imaging capability. Whereas viable technical paths to realize such goals appear to be straightforward, they remain to be demonstrated. That is, no gossamer telescopes based on membrane optics are flying today.

Under the taxonomy of this chapter, the following list provides direction for a new round of research into membrane optics for gossamer spacecraft.

1. Systems

   1. Pursue development of viable collections of technology through ground demonstrations of the optical performance of membrane optical systems. The ground demonstrations should be engineered as an initial step to proving readiness for space missions by enforcing spacecrafttype limitations on mass and power.

   2. Develop models for predicting the optical-quality behavior of membranes in preparation for deployment and operation in space. This development is needed to show sponsors that the concept will work.

1. Component technology

   1. Manufacturing/materials

      1. Continue development of low-CTE materials as a means of handling the intense thermal environment of space.

      2. Continue development...