Tailoring MIL-STD-464A and MIL-STD-461F

Requirements for Space Systems Applications

David Brumbaugh #, Joseph Chott *, Ken Javor**, James Lukash ##
#
The Boeing Company
P.O. Box 3707, Seattle, WA 98124
david.brumbaugh@boeing.com
*Orbital Sciences Corporation
1440 N Fiesta Blvd, Gilbert, AZ 85233-8366
Chott.Joseph@orbital.com
**EMC Compliance
P.O. Box 14161, Huntsville, AL 35815-0161
ken.javor@emccompliance.com
##
Lockheed Martin Space Systems Company
1111 Lockheed Martin Way, Sunnyvale, CA 94088
James.A.Lukash@lmco.com

Abstract— MIL-STD-464 and MIL-STD-461 are the basis for the TOR and begin anew based upon MIL-STD-464A [3] and
electromagnetic effects requirements for military procurements MIL-STD-461F [4] requirements.
for all platforms. Tailoring of requirements is essential to that A draft of the standard was released for public comment
process so that it applies to the special needs of spaceflight. AIAA late August 2008. Comments were addressed and incorporated
S-121-2009, “Electromagnetic Compatibility Requirements for
as applicable, and the document went into technical and
Space Equipment and Systems”, was developed during a three
year effort by a government/industry committee. This paper editorial revision. The committee voted to release the updated
describes how MIL-STD-464 and MIL-STD-461 were tailored document in June 2009. Publication occurred in October 2009,
for space applications. following the approval of the AIAA Standards Executive
Council (SEC).
I. INTRODUCTION
A three year effort to develop a new electromagnetic III. PURPOSE
compatibility standard for space systems culminated in 2009 The AIAA S-121-2009 standard [5], when followed in its
with the release of AIAA S-121-2009. The committee that entirety to design, build, and test space systems and
developed the standard comprised a balance of industry and equipment, will yield a robust electromagnetic capability
government subject matter experts. The co-authors of this design suitable for high-reliability space missions.
paper all participated actively on the committee. This paper
discusses some of the unique details of the standard, and But, one may ask, why a new standard, why not continue to
specifically summarizes how it tailors a well developed set of use the existing MIL-STD-1541A? Some of the reasons are as
requirements to apply specifically to space systems and follows:
equipment.
A. Military space systems EMC (electromagnetic
II. BACKGROUND compatibility) has generally been governed by MIL-STD-
1541, or specifications tailored based on -1541.
This effort has mistakenly been referred to as a “MIL-STD-
1541B” by some, but it is not a military standard. The B. MIL-STD-464 addresses space systems, but with limited
document is not part of the military standardization process, detail – more is needed to adequately specify requirements
and is not based on MIL-STD-1541A [1]. for space systems.
The AIAA (American Institute of Aeronautics and
Astronautics) committee began in early 2006 with The C. There has been no new space systems EMC standard since
Aerospace Corporation Report # TOR 2005 (8387)-1, the 1980’s – an update or new standard is needed.
“Electromagnetic Compatibility Requirements for Space
D. Acquisition reform policy drives the direction toward an
Equipment and Systems” [2] (currently revision A as of this
industry standard, rather than a new or revised MIL-STD.
writing), as a starting point. After much debate and work, and
nearly a year into the effort, the committee voted to abandon

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E. This document specifies general design practices and sets drive up cost on most platforms. Including the most stringent
recommended verification and validation requirements for requirements was considered and discussed by the committee.
space vehicles and launch vehicles. However, if this approach were adopted, and while applicable
requirements could always be relaxed, the experience of those
IV. SCOPE on the committee with system integration backgrounds was
The scope statement in the document is as follows: followed. Once a requirement is made baseline in a standard,
“This standard is applicable for the procurement of space and a procurement is made based on that standard, it is very
systems, including spacecraft, space vehicles, launch vehicles, difficult to relax that requirement, and the cost of the program
ground systems, and associated equipment/subsystems. is unnecessarily impacted.
“This standard establishes performance and verification
requirements for the purpose of ensuring space systems VI. THE STANDARD
electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), including all As mentioned earlier, the standard blends system and
electromagnetic environmental effects. Engineering issues that equipment-level requirements. In a paper of this length, it is
must be addressed in order to achieve system-level EMC are impossible to cover all of the details. The following is a
identified herein, with guidance and rationale toward summary of the substantive departures from MIL-STD-464
achieving specification compliance.” [5] and MIL-STD-461 in developing the standard.
While not a military standard, the standard was developed Generally, for equipment-level requirements, if a
in much the same tradition as MIL-STD-1541A, which requirement is adequately stated in MIL-STD-461 without
blended system-level requirements with equipment-level need for tailoring, the AIAA standard simply references that
requirements in one standard. Whereas MIL-E-6051D and requirement. However, for system requirements, it was
MIL-STD-461C were the building blocks that went into the deemed appropriate by the committee to include the wording
system and equipment-level requirements in MIL-STD-1541, from MIL-STD-464, tailored or otherwise, in the new
the committee used MIL-STD-464A and MIL-STD-461F as standard. This is because many of the system-level
the foundation of S-121-2009. requirements are short statements, and would be easier for the
It is also worth noting that one member of the AIAA S-121 user to follow if kept together, and at the same time would not
committee also served as an industry representative to the make the new document unnecessarily bulky. On the other
MIL-STD-464 and MIL-STD-461 Tri-Service Working hand, the detailed test requirements from MIL-STD-461 can
Groups, acting as a liaison between the AIAA committee and consume numerous pages with steps and figures, and it
the Tri-Service Working Groups. This helped to ensure seemed unnecessary to reproduce these requirements here
harmonization between the AIAA standard and the MIL-STDs, unless substantially tailored by the new standard. Also, and
especially MIL-STD-461, which was being revised to revision perhaps most importantly, by including only departures to
F at the time. MIL-STD-461, the departures stand out and are noticed, as
opposed to being lost in the minutiae. Being cognizant that
V. GROUND RULES test personnel familiar with MIL-STD-461 might see an
The committee set up some basic ground rules for building "RE102" requirement and then press on without further
this document: investigation, the committee felt this was the best way to
mitigate this risk.
A. No new requirements without a proven test methodology It should also be mentioned that in the tradition of MIL-
This is pretty basic. It would be poor practice to invoke a STD-461 and -464, an appendix is included in order to
requirement that turns out to be un-testable, or which is provide rationale, guidance and background, as appropriate,
particularly difficult to implement. Any new requirement was for the user. The appendix is critical for the user in developing
tested in the lab by members of the committee to ensure that it tailoring to the requirements of S-121-2009 for any particular
is practical to execute using equipment generally available in program, and the committee gave commensurate attention to
most EMI test facilities. developing the appendix.
In the case of requirements that require new test equipment
or test aids, schematics for such test aids are included in the VII. AIAA S-121-2009 SYSTEM LEVEL REQUIREMENTS
standard. These test aids were also built and checked out by Section 6 of the AIAA S-121-2009 standard tailors the
members of the committee. detailed requirements of MIL-STD-464, comprising the
system-level requirements of AIAA S-121-2009. Sections
B. The 80% Rule from MIL-STD-464 paragraph 5 that received significant
A general philosophy was established that the standard tailoring, and reflected in the corresponding section 6 of
would be written to cover 80% of space system platforms. AIAA S-121 are listed below, with a brief summary of the
Tailoring is available to cover the remaining 20% of programs tailoring:
that require more or less stringent requirements.
This was deemed to be the most practical approach to A. 6.1 EMI Safety Margins
balance cost and schedules with the EME requirements for the This section tailors MIL-STD-464 section 5.1 by adding
majority of programs. A standard with very stringent some clarification to applicability of the requirement. It also
requirements applicable to all platforms would unnecessarily

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outlines specific safety margin requirements for various types F. 6.9 Electrostatic Charge Control
of interfaces and circuit criticality, and cites acceptable Some MIL-STD-464A requirements have been deleted
methodology for verification by analysis. The specifics are since they do not deal with space vehicle issues. Unique
provided in Table 1 of the new standard. requirements for space systems, such as space plasma
B. 6.2 Intrasystem Electromagnetic Compatibility charging environments, are addressed.
MIL-STD-464 section 5.2.1 is the hull-generated G. 6.10 Electromagnetic Radiation Hazards (EMRADHAZ)
intermodulation interference requirement for ships. It is recast No substantive changes, but the personnel exposure limit
here to the appropriate applicability for space systems. Passive was updated to ANSI/IEEE C95.1.
intermodulation interference is a real problem that must be
addressed in space systems. H. 6.11 Life Cycle E3 Hardness
No substantive changes, however, no formal verification is
Section 5.2.2 from MIL-STD-464 pertains to below deck required.
electromagnetic environments. Not applicable to space
systems, this requirement is not included in AIAA S-121. I. 6.12 Electrical Bonding
No substantive changes, but there are additions to limit
Section 5.2.3 of MIL-STD-464 is the multipaction shock potentials to specific AC and DC levels, as well as
requirement. It is unchanged in AIAA S-121, and appears as adding sections for control of RF potentials and static charge
paragraph 6.2.2 in AIAA S-121. control grounding. External grounding issues are covered here
also.
Section 6.2.3 Deployment, Staging, and Separation Events
adds a requirement for the testing of these events on the J. 6.15 System Circuit and Structure Reference
ground for electromagnetic compatibility. This is a new section dealing with the system electrical
return current network to ensure that the system is self-
Section 6.2.4 Plugs-Out Test adds a requirement for testing compatible. A detailed description of the return network
of the spacecraft on the ground with support equipment cables design (system-level schematic of return referencing and
disconnected, to verify electromagnetic compatibility of the structure) shall be documented and maintained. Details on
system in this configuration. chassis references for each circuit must be indicated, greatly
enhancing troubleshooting and fault detection.
Section 6.2.5 Demonstration of Receiver Safety Margin
adds a ground test to verify electromagnetic compatibility of K. 6.17 Wiring
on board receivers either through a RF front-end margin This is a new section dealing with wire separation, wire
assessment or a baseband margin assessment. categorization and shielding design features. If no guidance is
given in contractual documents, MIL-HDBK-83575 shall be
C. 6.3 External Electromagnetic Environment implemented.
This section tailors MIL-STD-464 paragraph 5.3 by
specifying default RF environments for ground operations and L. 6.18 Material Properties
on-orbit operations. The user is advised to determine the This is a new section dealing with surface coating, thermal
environment for the specific launch site and orbit. The levels blankets and dielectrics that might affect spacecraft charging
presented in Tables 2 and 3 are intended to envelope most issues. In addition, care is needed if high permeability
applications. The section also addresses operation of electrical materials are used, as these materials can affect magnetic
ground support equipment in the RF environment. dipole moment and result in passive intermodulation products.

D. 6.4 Lightning M. 6.19 Data Formats

This section tailors MIL-STD-464 section 5.4 by clarifying This is a new section dealing with the format of data
the applicability to prelaunch configurations. Protective received from subcontractors on new designs or new tests.
measures may include the prelaunch configuration. The Tabular electronic data is requested in addition to plots.
requirement is not applicable during launch, as it is expected
that launch day weather criteria will ensure that the system is N. 6.20 Tailoring Guidance for Contractual Application
not launched in weather that can produce a lightning This is a new requirement that gives guidance on tailoring
attachment. Lightning stroke waveform parameters are the of requirements when existing requirements may not be
same as those used in MIL-STD-464. pertinent (through analyses) for the specific instance and/or
environment. Further guidance is given in Annex A.
E. 6.8 Magnetic Field Environment
This is a new section that deals with the specific magnetic VIII. AIAA S-121-2009 EQUIPMENT LEVEL
field and magnetic moment issues that are common in space REQUIREMENTS
vehicles. Sections 7 & 8 represent the committee¹s tailoring of MIL-
STD-461F to best apply to space programs. As mentioned

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earlier, for conciseness and ease of use, it was decided early Ground plane interference test requirements are included
on that if a MIL-STD-461F requirement is usable as-is for those platforms which use structure for power current
without tailoring, the standard would so state, and move on, return.
reserving discussion only for those sections where changes
had been made. This philosophy is captured in Table 5, G. 8.18 Susceptibility to Switching Transients
Exceptions to MIL-STD-461F Section 4, which is the first A requirement controlling susceptibility to turn-on
place the user of this standard should look when addressing transients is included, applicable to those equipment and
equipment-level EMI qualification to S-121-2009. Table 5 is a subsystems operating on buses with other equipment that is
synopsis of section 7 of the standard, which provides all the switched on or off at full potential.
detailed changes to MIL-STD-461F section 4.
H. 8.20 Radiated Emissions, Electric Field
Some of the more notable changes to MIL-STD-461F The electric field radiated emission requirement begins at
section 4 General Requirements are briefly described: 20 MHz using the biconical antenna, dispensing with the 41
inch rod antenna. Special notches for typically used spacecraft
A. 7.6 Switching Transients radios are included with measurement bandwidths appropriate
Whereas MIL-STD-461D/E/F eschew control over single for the protected radios. With the exception of the notches,
event switching transients, it is traditional in the space EMC the limit in general is substantially relaxed from those found
community to include measurement of turn-on transients, and in MIL-STD-461F RE102.
such a requirement has been included in section 8 of the new
standard.
IX. FUTURE WORK
B. 7.7 Measurement Tolerances The committee is currently dormant, collecting user
Frequency measurement accuracy is greater than the 2% comments and suggestions for future revisions. The standard
required by MIL-STD-461F in special notches carved out for is on a five year review cycle, which is typical for other
spacecraft radio receiver protection in the radiated emission industry standards. As the 5 year cycle approaches, it is the
limit. intent of the committee participants to reconvene and review
the comments and incorporate any revisions as needed.
C. 7.9 Power Source Impedance
The default LISN for use in equipment-level qualification
is the 5 microhenry LISN found in the MIL-STD-461F REFERENCES
appendix, rather than the 50 microhenry LISN, which has
been the default MIL-STD-461D/E/F LISN since 1993. [1] United States Air Force, MIL-STD-1541A “Electromagnetic
Compatibility Requirements for Space Systems”, 30 Dec 1987.
[2] The Aerospace Corporation, Report # TOR 2005 (8387)-1,
“Electromagnetic Compatibility Requirements for Space Equipment
Some of the more notable changes to MIL-STD-461F and Systems”, Revision A, 1 January 2008.
section 5 Detailed Requirements are briefly described: [3] United States Department of Defense, MIL-STD-464A
“Electromagnetic Environmental Effects Requirements for Systems”,
D. 8.4, 8.5 Conducted Emissions 19 December 2002.
[4] United States Department of Defense, MIL-STD-461F “Requirements
Conducted emissions extend to 20 MHz, instead of 10 MHz, for the Control of Electromagnetic Interference Characteristics of
and apply equally to power and signal cables. Power cable Subsystems and Equipment”, 10 December 2007.
length is reduced to one meter instead of two, in order to make [5] American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, AIAA S-121-2009,
measurements to 20 MHz with sufficient accuracy. The audio “Electromagnetic Compatibility Requirements for Space Equipment
and Systems”, 4 September 2009, ISBN 978-1-60086-724-8.
frequency end of the conducted emission limit is tied to the
equipment load current, and this follows the MIL-STD-461F
CE101 appendix.

E. 8.17 Load Induced Voltage Transients

A requirement to measure and control load-induced
transients is included. This is normally controlled by power
system requirements, but it was deemed by the committee
prudent to include some control in this standard, to ensure that
the equipment does not adversely affect power quality
resulting in transient susceptibility of other users on the power
bus.
F. 8.15, 8.16, 8.17 Conducted Susceptibility, Ground Plane
Injection

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