**8.1 Spinning satellite**

The first configuration is the one characterising a spinning satellite. The satellite usually has cylindrical shape with the symmetry axis as the rotation one. This configuration was the first one to be adopted; the available power is not elevated with respect to the panel surface, indeed the equivalent active area results from the division of the actual area of panel by π. The satellite Meteosat is a good example; this configuration is nowadays rarely used, but in some cases is still interesting for scientific satellites like those of the Cluster mission.

Fig. 17. Solar Array for spinning Satellite, Meteosat Second Generation (Credits: ESA - MSG Team)
