The CNES expertise laboratory aims to conductflight experiments to gather data on the detection, trapping, or UV exposure of contaminants in space environment. The two experiments outlined in this poster serve asproofs of concepts, laying the groundwork for the development of more sophisticated experiments.
The first experiment (Fig. 1) will occur aboard The Exploration Company's modular and reusable orbital vehicle Nyx, slated to be in orbit by 2025. The experiment principle involves trapping and detecting a specific type of contaminant. Zeolite pellets and paint, developed by CNES and IS2M (CNRS), will adsorb this contaminant, while a functionalized quartz µ-balance will detect it, enabling the monitoring of its deposition dynamics (Fig. 2).
The second experiment, named CERBUS (Fig. 3), involves exposing silicone contaminants at various concentrations and on different substrates to solar flux for 3 to 5 days on a CNES stratospheric balloon (Fig. 4) during a transatlantic flight in 2024. Samples will undergo characterization beforehand and will be analyzed after the flight to identify potential physico-chemical alteration linked to photopolymerization induced by solar radiation.