OREANDA-NEWS. June 18, 2012. Scientific and technical council on material engineering held a Presidium meeting at Academician M.F. Reshetnev Information Satellite Systems on June 5-6. The meeting brought together representatives of ROSCOSMOS enterprises and other Russian companies developing and delivering ground-breaking materials.

High-tech materials are of utmost importance when building lightweight and reliable satellites intended to carry out their mission in orbit for many years. Space material engineering is a promising research area providing extensive opportunities to the space industry development. Not so long ago satellite parts and structures were made of titanium and aluminum alloys. Now they are replaced by new and more advanced materials.

The two-day meeting program enabled ISS-Reshetnev specialists and their colleagues from other space enterprises to discuss a number of issues relating to the current situation and development prospects of space material science. The central theme of the meeting focused on the application of polymer composite materials. Experts believe that they are the materials of the future. Modern ISS-Reshetnev-built satellites have 60% of their structures made of composites. Employing parts and assemblies based on multicomponent materials, the company manufactures advanced spacecraft under the Federal programs and for its foreign customers.

The Reshetnev Company team showed the guests production facilities where a wide range of composite parts are manufactured. These materials are valued on their superior physical properties which provide considerable structural weight savings, thus enabling a spacecraft to accommodate increased payload. It means that a customer benefits from a highly functional craft delivering satellite-based services to a greater number of users.

All national spacecraft manufacturers are concerned about production of light and strong materials in Russia. Today a comprehensive program, devoted to the development of material science for the period till 2015, is being prepared. It is expected that its pilot project will be issued in 2013. That is why one of the most important reasons behind holding the visiting session was to discuss main points of this document. According to Anatoly Timofeev, first deputy general director of “Kompozit”, ISS-Reshetnev has accumulated unique expertise and knowledge on applying components made of composite and non-metallic materials, and this valuable information will be included into the program and shared with other Russian space companies.