Education Commons^™

Openorbiter: A Student Space Program, Jeremy Straub, Joshua Berk, Christoffer Korvald

Jeremy Straub

OpenOrbiter is a student-conceived, student-run small spacecraft program operating at the University of North Dakota. It involves students from numerous departments including both STEM (computer science, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, space studies) and non-STEM (business, entrepreneurship, education) disciplines. The program is comprised of 19 student-lead, faculty-mentored groups focusing on all areas of spacecraft design and fabrication.

This paper presents the OpenOrbiter space program as a model for emulation. It focuses specifically on the utility of participation for students and faculty in the Computer Science discipline, while briefly summarizing the motivation for participants in other disciplines. These benefits include learning the …

The Development Of Operating Software For An Open Small Spacecraft, Donovan Torgerson, Christoffer Korvald, Jeremy Straub, Joshua Berk

Jeremy Straub

The OpenOrbiter program aims to design and demonstrate the Open Prototype for Educational NanoSats (OPEN) framework. OPEN reduces small spacecraft development costs by making the design plans freely available to any institution that wishes to use them. OpenOrbiter will demonstrate the viability of this design via being launched into low-Earth orbit (LEO).

This poster presents the initial design work for the Operating Software for the OpenOrbiter spacecraft. Operating software efficiency is extremely important due to the limited level of communication with ground-based operators and limited onboard power production. The operating software performs task scheduling, constraint compliance management, and schedule optimization …

Risk Analysis & Management In Student-Centered Spacecraft Development Projects, Jeremy Straub, Ronald Fevig, James Casler, Om Yadav

Jeremy Straub

Student involvement in any engineering project introduces an element of risk. This risk is particularly pronounced with small spacecraft projects, as a failure of the spacecraft on-orbit can result in a complete failure of the mission. However, student involvement in these projects is critical to allow research aims to be accomplished, in a university setting, and to train the next generation of spacecraft engineering professionals. The nature of risks posed by student involvement is discussed and a framework for assessing and mitigating these risks presented.