Paper 14145-301
Paper 14145-301
The FLUTE 1 technology demonstration mission and payload
9 July 2026 • 17:30 - 19:00 CEST | Room B4-M3
Abstract
The Fluidic Telescope (FLUTE) concept enables large-aperture space observatories, overcoming scaling limitations of segmented mirrors by using thin liquid films that naturally form smooth spherical mirrors in microgravity. The ultimate goal is a 50-meter class observatory. We report on the conceptual design for FLUTE-1, a 1-meter aperture technology demonstration mission designed for Low Earth Orbit. The paper presents the conceptual design for the spherical aberrations corrector and the core instrumentation: a Shack-Hartmann wavefront sensor to characterize the fluidic mirror's optical performance, and an imaging camera to obtain the first images and assess imaging performance. FLUTE-1 is a crucial step toward validating fluidic optics for large-scale space astronomy.
Presenter
NASA Ames Research Ctr. (United States)
Eduardo Bendek is a senior optical engineer working at NASA Ames Research Center. He works developing photonic instrumentation and novel optical concepts. Previously he worked at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in multiple projects including the coronagraph for the Roman Space Telescope.