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Full-Text Articles in Mechanical Engineering
Investigation Of Navigation Systems For Size, Cost, And Mass Constrained Satellites, Omar Awad
Investigation Of Navigation Systems For Size, Cost, And Mass Constrained Satellites, Omar Awad
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
The feasibility of using radically inexpensive micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) technology for navigation of a nanosatellite is investigated with a focus on attitude estimation. Typically, larger satellites are equipped with star cameras, sun sensors, or Earth horizon sensors for attitude estimation. These sensors can provide very accurate attitude measurements. A nanosatellite is highly size, power, and cost constrained and cannot readily accommodate these sensors. Our mission is to design, build, and operate a radically inexpensive nanosatellite system. While there is no consensus on what constitutes a "radically inexpensive" satellite, our goal is a maximum cost of $10,000 per unit. This precludes …
Solar-Powered Exploration Of The Venus Atmosphere, Marc Migliozzi, Cory Everman, Rebecca Buerhle, Umar Muhammed, Steven Abbate, Chase Champagne
Solar-Powered Exploration Of The Venus Atmosphere, Marc Migliozzi, Cory Everman, Rebecca Buerhle, Umar Muhammed, Steven Abbate, Chase Champagne
Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects
The objective of this study was to design a solar powered, unmanned aircraft to orbit in the upper Venus atmosphere and search for signs of alien life. Topics of flight conditions, signs of life, basic mission plan, source of power, design process, instrumentation, and final designs are covered. Solar energy is ideal for this type of mission because it is the only reliable and abundant energy source accessible for long term space travel. The target altitude, being 60 to 70 km, has winds of up to 95 m/s. The aircraft will need to remain stable under such conditions. Due to …