Stephen Horan
Students, faculty, and staff at NMSU are in the process of designing and building a small satellite as part of the Air Force/NASA University Nanosatellite 3 Program. The New Mexico State University Satellite (NMSUSat) is being produced as the subject of senior design classes in Engineering and as part of MS projects. The satellite is being designed for UV measurements and to test technology. It is limited in mass to 30 kg and a size of 45 cm in any dimension. The entire satellite needs to be designed and functioning by January 2005.
In this talk, we will examine the science and engineering mission for the NMSUSat, the legacy components that will be used, and the challenges to completing the production of the satellite. Major challenges include attitude control, earth and sun sensors, structural analysis, solar cell design, and thermal analysis. The audience will also be asked to consider what the follow-on satellite mission might be.