Applications of Slow-Scan Television Systems to Planetary Exploration

The design of a spacecraft television system must be selected from many parameters while seeking to optimize performance and reliability with respect to weight and complexity, within the constraints of existing technology. The slow-scan TV system employing a vidicon photosensor uses a mechanical shutter which allows the vidicon to effectively store the scene image and perform the readout sequence at a much reduced rate. Digital encoding of the analog video signal prior to recording preserves the high signal-to-noise ratio and eliminates signal degradation in the Earth-spacecraft downlink. Future trends are described which involve improvements in sensors, data encoding and storage. Various types of television systems considered for future planetary missions are discussed.^*

Print ISSN

0361-4573

Published

1970-07

Content type

Original Research

DOI

10.5594/J14325