Science and Education Publishing American Journal of Mechanical Engineering 1 1 2013 05 07 Design of the Deployment Mechanism of Solar Array on a Small Satellite 66 72 EN M. G. El-Sherbiny A. Khattab M.K. Kassab Structure Department, National authority for Remote Sensing & Space Sciences (NARSS), Cairo, Egypt AJME2013132 10.12691/ajme-1-3-2 2012 12 20 2013 05 06 2013 05 07 Abstract This paper presents analytical simulation of drag braking during deployment of a solar array system of a small satellite within the space environment, and helps the designer to detect problems during ground testing. The deployment mechanism (DM) is modeled by using Mechanical Desktop (MDT) software and analyzed by using Finite Element Analysis Package (ANSYS 11). Design and Stress analysis of DM is performed at the most critical points during its functioning. Several finite element analysis models were considered to verify the DM integrity. These analyses were correlated with static, modal and random vibration testing. The present work can help in checking the survival of the mechanism under realistic operating conditions and makes sure that it will perform well after an orbit insertion of the satellite.