All-reflective solar coronagraph sensor and thermal control subsystem

A coronagraph optical system for continuously imaging a wide field of view, the coronagraph optical system comprising:

• an all-reflective foreoptics assembly having an entrance aperture positionable towards the Sun and configured to receive light rays over the wide field of view, the all-reflective foreoptics assembly including a plurality of foreoptics mirrors that receive the light rays via the entrance aperture and sequentially reflect the light rays, the light rays including first light rays from a viewed scene and second light rays corresponding to a direct solar image of the Sun;
• a sensor assembly including at least one photosensitive detector and configured to produce an image of the viewed scene based on the first light rays;
• an all-reflective relay optics assembly configured to receive the first light rays from the all-reflective foreoptics assembly and to reflect the first light rays to the sensor assembly;
• and
• a solar rejection optical component positioned between the all-reflective foreoptics assembly and the all-reflective relay optics assembly and dynamically configurable such that the direct solar image of the Sun, reflected by the all-reflective foreoptics assembly to the solar rejection optical component, is reflected away from the all-reflective relay optics assembly and the first light rays are reflected to the all-reflective relay optics assembly while the entrance aperture of the all-reflective foreoptics assembly is continuously positioned towards the Sun.