Abstract: A system for managing electrical energy and for controlling attitide of a satellite has an attitude control unit which controls a plurality of reaction wheels oriented about different axes for instance three wheels. An on-board electricity power supply network has a solar array, a payload and a storage unit connected to a power line. The storage unit comprises a buffer supercapacitor and one inertia wheel unit with a respective motor/generator and typically two contra-rotating wheels. Interchanges between the storage units and the power supply line are controlled by a regulator which attenuates power demand transients and thus torque transients on the inertia wheel or wheels.

Abstract: The photosensitive device implements charge coupling and accumulation for analyzing a light signal. A sensor has an image zone M rows and N columns of photosensitive sites for receiving a light signal during successive acquisition periods, a transfer zone of P rows and N columns of non-photosensitive sites for receiving, in each site of a first row, the sum of the charges in a respective column of the image zone at the end of each successive sampling period. It also has a storage zone of P rows an N columns in which each column is adjacent to a respective column of the transfer zone and each site is arranged to receive charges contained in an adjacent site of the transfer zone and to accumulate it. The sensor is clocked for a sequence.

Abstract: The circuit has a power busbar, a solar generator made up of a plurality of sections that can be connected individually to the busbar via switches and a storage battery. The busbar is permanently connected to an energy-storage capacitor having a capacitance of at least 0.1 F. The busbar is powered from the battery via at least one discharge module controlled in on/off mode by a regulator which also controls the switches. The circuit is particularly suitable for use on low earth orbit (LEO) satellites.