71st International Astronautical Congress (IAC) – The CyberSpace Edition, 12-14 October 2020, 2020
In recent years, nanosatellites have experienced rapid development in light of the launch of hund... more In recent years, nanosatellites have experienced rapid development in light of the launch of hundreds of them in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO). As part of the research investigations conducted in spacecraft operations, the Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space Sciences, and Technology (SAASST) is currently developing Sharjah-Sat-1. The 3U X-ray Detector CubeSat is set to launch in the second quarter of 2021. A Ground Station control system is essential for communicating with Sharjah-Sat-1 to facilitate receiving telemetry and sending commands. In support of such a mission and future ones, a full-fledged ground station has been built, which can be useful for multiple satellite missions. The ground station is currently operating on UHF/VHF frequency bands with high gain. An S-band dish antenna system is planned to be installed soon to augment ground station capability to support ongoing CubeSat operations. The Ground Station's hardware is composed of several components, i.e., UHF/VHF antennas, a Software Defined Radio (SDR) transceiver, a suitable Rotator with Elevation-Azimuth dual controller, and a Rotator control interface. As for the software employed, it is mainly the Ham Radio Deluxe package that consists of a Ham Radio Deluxe (HRD) satellite tracking, HRD rotator control, and an HRD rig, along with a custom-designed ground station console software for Sharjah-Sat-1 related data and commands. With the implementation of this system, the ground station is fully automated while tracking and can also be remotely controlled. Besides its satellite tracking use, the ground station will provide practical training for university students in anticipation of future small satellite operations.
71st International Astronautical Congress (IAC), CyberSpace Edition, 12-14 October 2020, 2020
SharjahSat-1 is a collaborative research project by the Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space Scie... more SharjahSat-1 is a collaborative research project by the Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space Science, and Technology (SAASST), University of Sharjah (UoS), Istanbul Technical University (ITU), and Sabanci University (SU). The 3U+ CubeSat will implement an improved X-ray Detector (iXRD), as the primary payload, and a secondary payload, which is a system of two optical cameras. The X-ray detector's objective is to detect hard X-rays from very bright X-ray sources, and to study the solar coronal holes, whereas the camera system will provide a low-resolution remote sensing application. Sharjah-Sat-1 would be the first CubeSat mission to be developed by the SAASST team and UoS students, which aims to build capacities and expertise that would be of much value for the following future CubeSat missions. The thermal analysis of the Sharjah-Sat-1 is a crucial step to assure the safety of the internal systems of the satellite from the harsh conditions of outer space. Each component of the satellites has different operating temperature requirements. Since passive thermal control methods are mostly used for smaller satellites, and no means of active thermal control systems are to be used on Sharjah-Sat-1, it is critical to ensure that each component would remain in the allowable temperature range that it was designed to operate in throughout the satellite's mission. According to two different orbits that are chosen based on the suitable launching options available in the Q1 of 2021 and Q2 of 2021, a detailed thermal model of Sharjah-Sat-1 is developed using commercial software. The simulations are carried out to help evaluate mission viability in different orbits in relation to subsystems' temperature limits. The thermal tests will be performed to support modelling and analysis in the thermal vacuum chamber of ITU-Space Systems Design and Test Laboratory. The simulated scenarios on the different orbits will enable us to choose the best orbit, in terms of assuring the safety of the satellite’s internal systems, since an appropriate thermal analysis design could potentially save the mission from failure and extend mission lifetime. Both orbits analyzed are found to be adequate for the mission.
71st International Astronautical Congress (IAC) – The CyberSpace Edition, 12-14 October 2020, 2020
In recent years, nanosatellites have experienced rapid development in light of the launch of hund... more In recent years, nanosatellites have experienced rapid development in light of the launch of hundreds of them in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO). As part of the research investigations conducted in spacecraft operations, the Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space Sciences, and Technology (SAASST) is currently developing Sharjah-Sat-1. The 3U X-ray Detector CubeSat is set to launch in the second quarter of 2021. A Ground Station control system is essential for communicating with Sharjah-Sat-1 to facilitate receiving telemetry and sending commands. In support of such a mission and future ones, a full-fledged ground station has been built, which can be useful for multiple satellite missions. The ground station is currently operating on UHF/VHF frequency bands with high gain. An S-band dish antenna system is planned to be installed soon to augment ground station capability to support ongoing CubeSat operations. The Ground Station's hardware is composed of several components, i.e., UHF/VHF antennas, a Software Defined Radio (SDR) transceiver, a suitable Rotator with Elevation-Azimuth dual controller, and a Rotator control interface. As for the software employed, it is mainly the Ham Radio Deluxe package that consists of a Ham Radio Deluxe (HRD) satellite tracking, HRD rotator control, and an HRD rig, along with a custom-designed ground station console software for Sharjah-Sat-1 related data and commands. With the implementation of this system, the ground station is fully automated while tracking and can also be remotely controlled. Besides its satellite tracking use, the ground station will provide practical training for university students in anticipation of future small satellite operations.
71st International Astronautical Congress (IAC), CyberSpace Edition, 12-14 October 2020, 2020
SharjahSat-1 is a collaborative research project by the Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space Scie... more SharjahSat-1 is a collaborative research project by the Sharjah Academy for Astronomy, Space Science, and Technology (SAASST), University of Sharjah (UoS), Istanbul Technical University (ITU), and Sabanci University (SU). The 3U+ CubeSat will implement an improved X-ray Detector (iXRD), as the primary payload, and a secondary payload, which is a system of two optical cameras. The X-ray detector's objective is to detect hard X-rays from very bright X-ray sources, and to study the solar coronal holes, whereas the camera system will provide a low-resolution remote sensing application. Sharjah-Sat-1 would be the first CubeSat mission to be developed by the SAASST team and UoS students, which aims to build capacities and expertise that would be of much value for the following future CubeSat missions. The thermal analysis of the Sharjah-Sat-1 is a crucial step to assure the safety of the internal systems of the satellite from the harsh conditions of outer space. Each component of the satellites has different operating temperature requirements. Since passive thermal control methods are mostly used for smaller satellites, and no means of active thermal control systems are to be used on Sharjah-Sat-1, it is critical to ensure that each component would remain in the allowable temperature range that it was designed to operate in throughout the satellite's mission. According to two different orbits that are chosen based on the suitable launching options available in the Q1 of 2021 and Q2 of 2021, a detailed thermal model of Sharjah-Sat-1 is developed using commercial software. The simulations are carried out to help evaluate mission viability in different orbits in relation to subsystems' temperature limits. The thermal tests will be performed to support modelling and analysis in the thermal vacuum chamber of ITU-Space Systems Design and Test Laboratory. The simulated scenarios on the different orbits will enable us to choose the best orbit, in terms of assuring the safety of the satellite’s internal systems, since an appropriate thermal analysis design could potentially save the mission from failure and extend mission lifetime. Both orbits analyzed are found to be adequate for the mission.
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