UPSat – the first open source hardware and software satellite is delivered • Hacker News Board

Re: UPSat – the first open source hardware and software satellite is delivered

#21

Post by ralmeida » Fri, Sep 02, 2016, 1:00 AM UTC

shraken wrote: post #12

What do you use for attitude control? Are your design files and software on a public repository?

If elkos doesn't answer, according to some research I did, 'reaction wheels' are mostly used for changing attitude, and attitude is measured using either star tracking or sunray angle measurement.

One source: http://bluecanyontech.com/portfolio-posts/cubesatsystems/

Note: I'm not particularly familiar with CubeSat development other than being very curious about it.

Re: UPSat – the first open source hardware and software satellite is delivered

#22

Post by IgorPartola » Fri, Sep 02, 2016, 1:08 AM UTC

So what is the cost of this thing? How much will it take for me to put something like a Raspberry Pi in orbit?

Re: UPSat – the first open source hardware and software satellite is delivered

#23

Post by rtkwe » Fri, Sep 02, 2016, 2:57 AM UTC

IgorPartola wrote: post #22

So what is the cost of this thing? How much will it take for me to put something like a Raspberry Pi in orbit?

I found a page for 2009 that breaks down the cost of a generic educational cubesat down. It includes the ability to do attitude control and a camera and it came to ~52k including launch costs. It's probably fallen since then.

http://www.satmagazine.com/story.php?number=602922274

Re: UPSat – the first open source hardware and software satellite is delivered

#24

Post by rtkwe » Fri, Sep 02, 2016, 3:08 AM UTC

shraken wrote: post #12

What do you use for attitude control? Are your design files and software on a public repository?

Two common options are magneto-torque rods that that use the earth's magnetic field or reaction wheels that spin masses up and down to provide torques to provide attitude control. They've documented their attitude systems btw on the site [1] it's magneto-torques and a "spin torquer" which I hadn't heard of but looks like it's another type of magnetic attitude control.

[1] https://upsat.gr/?page_id=26

Re: UPSat – the first open source hardware and software satellite is delivered

#25

Post by thewisenerd » Fri, Sep 02, 2016, 8:46 AM UTC

elkos wrote: post #2

Hey there, UPSat team member here. If you have any questions for the team I would be more than happy to answer them of relay them to the team.

How do you actually _do_ the simulations/testing for various scenarios?

Re: UPSat – the first open source hardware and software satellite is delivered

#26

Post by grandalf » Sun, Sep 04, 2016, 1:46 AM UTC

pjc50 wrote: post #13

grandalf wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Will there be a hardened version? Shielded from laser attacks, EMI attacks, projectiles, explosives, etc?

There's no sensible way to shield a satellite from projectiles at orbital velocity.

I wonder about the other risks. What do you think is the most effective way to disable a satellite? (And correspondingly, the best way to keep one safe?)