All the power subsystems of the launched satellites have shown good flight performance and high reliability. Design and Performance of Satellite Power Subsystems (1) Experimental communication satellites (ECS) The solar array consists of two cylindrical solar panels. Each is 0.72 m long, 2.1 m in diameter and covered with 20520 solar cells of 2 X 2 cm [6], n+/p, t]10.3%. (Fig. 1). Fig. 2 shows the diameter of the ECS power system, which has the following characteristics: 1. Power conditioning of ECS was performed mainly by automatic control circuitry and an auxiliary remote control circuit, so the reliability of the power supply was increased. The Ni-Cd battery was furnished with a third electrode to give a signal for charge protection and enter- and out-of-shadow control. 2. The solar array was connected with the batteries in parallel, so the output power from the solar array increased by 22.7%. 3. To assure reliability of the Ni-Cd batteries a new design of frame module was adopted and cell redundancy is changed to battery redundancy. As the result of this design, the weight of ECS decreased by approximately 50%. 4. To prevent accidental power failure a by-pass circuit was included in the nickelcadmium battery circuit. In this way the auxiliary rechargeable battery as used in INTELSAT IV can be omitted, and the weight is reduced. 5. In order to keep the power supply voltage within the range of 24-40 V when the satellite is in the sun, a high voltage protection side circuit was used.
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