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University-Built Nanosatellites for Research and Education

Northeast Regional Space Grant Meeting NY Space Grant, Cornell University . University-Built Nanosatellites for Research and Education. ICE Cubesat. Dr. Mason Peck Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering . What’s in Store. So you want to launch your senior project?

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University-Built Nanosatellites for Research and Education

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  1. Northeast Regional Space Grant Meeting NY Space Grant, Cornell University University-Built Nanosatellites for Research and Education ICE Cubesat Dr. Mason Peck Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

  2. What’s in Store • So you want to launch your senior project? • Cornell University's CUSat • Some surprising new spacecraft

  3. Launch Your Senior Project • University Nanosatellite Program • Air Force / NASA sponsorship • 1-2 years design, build, test • Seed funding ($100K of ~$500K?)

  4. Launch Your Senior Project • Cubesats • 10 cm cube concept from Stanford • ~$80k for launch in a "pod" 6 cubesats Cornell's ICE Cubesat: Ionospheric Scintillation Measurements with GPS Cubesat Kits: http://www.cubesatkit.com/ 3 cubesats

  5. Launch Your Senior Project • NASA Reduced-Gravity Student Flight Opportunities Program • 25 seconds of zero gravity • 40 seconds of lunar gravity Cornell Flights May 2007 Cornell Experiment May 2007

  6. Nanosat-4 Program Sponsors http://cusat.cornell.edu CUSatAn In-Orbit Inspection Technology Demonstrator Mason Peck Sibley School of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Cornell University Ithaca, NY Space Systems Design Studio

  7. University Nanosatellite Program • AFRL/AFOSR • $110K seed funding for ~11 schools • Biennial (2 years’ work) • CUSat • Cornell’s entry (only school in the region) • 40-80 students for 2 years • Won the competition and will launch in October 2009

  8. In-Orbit Inspection • Use one spacecraft to look at another • Why? • In-Orbit Test • Health and Usage Monitoring • Fault Detection and Response • Anomaly Resolution • Requisite Functionality for In-Orbit Construction, Maintenance, and Repair • Enabling Technology • Vision for Space Exploration • Responsive Space

  9. In-Orbit Inspection • The Recipe • Sensors • General applicability • Unambiguous elative position & attitude • Demo cooperative/uncooperative • Autonomy • Mission Operations • Functional robustness • Orbit Mechanics • Ground Segment / Data End-User

  10. CUSat - A Few Small Pictures • Where the pieces go

  11. CUSat - A Few Small Pictures • What Makes it Work • Carrier-Phase Differential GPS • Use the phase of the carrier wave (1.2 & 1.5 GHz) to determine distance among antennas • All antennas face the same way • At least 5 satellites are necessary (a blend of four distances plus one to resolve the ambiguity in the integer number of periods)

  12. Spacecraft in a University Environment • CUSat is ambitious • If it were simply a "me too" mission, we wouldn't waste our time • Train students on the right way to build spacecraft (UNP objective) • Necessitates a large team, >10% attention to systems engineering • Requirements analysis and management • Formal trade studies • Rigorous verification • Change control, other best practices • Complete documentation

  13. Spacecraft in a University Environment • Students dedicate a lot of time and effort. That's the benefit of a space project: enthusiastic participants. • We select students for the project, accepting less than 50% of applicants • Students receive some course credit • The experience has changed many students' futures.

  14. The Surprising Physicsof Very Small Satellites Dr. Mason Peck Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

  15. One Man's Disturbance isAnother Man's Propulsion System • Solar Sails • Photons impact a lightweight sail, pushing a spacecraft as if it were a sailboat.

  16. One Man's Disturbance isAnother Man's Propulsion System • They’re typically very big

  17. One Man's Disturbance isAnother Man's Propulsion System • That's because solar-sail designers want to carry large things, like themselves, to distant destinations • What if we make a very small one?

  18. Very Small Spacecraft • The spacecraft-on-a-chip • Solar cell, processor, magnetic coils, CCD camera, cell-phone antenna, etc. all on a single piece of semiconductor • Propulsion: • Solar sailing • Lorentz force • Cost: • 2 cents each? • Launch up to 24 billion on a Delta-4 rocket… The spacecraft-on-a-chip

  19. Very Small Spacecraft • Launch a swarm of them • Shape a large optical telescope or other useful device from a large number of tiny spacecraft

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