Sigrid Close
Stanford University
Exploring Uranus through SCATTER: Sustained ChipSat/CubeSat activity through radiation
Deploy probes through a mothership, tell the difference between something changing in time and something changing in space, and do other things such as communications and use of a laser beam from other ship to power probes
This will allow understanding about sun interactions as well as design smaller probes
Exploring uranus
High priority target and has only been visited by voyager 2
Highly inclined magnetic dipole predicted to undergo rapid reconfiguration with solar wind
Relevant as analogue to similar exoplanets
Long duration mission required to study magnetospheric and plasma dynamics, we hope to deploy probes intermittently…
Scatter concept minimize probe mass using a laser to replace subsystems
PV cells for conversion to DC electricity and a retroreflector for data transfer to mothership with reflectivity control panels for thrust and attitude control
For the laser beam itself, baseline transmitter with diffraction limited parameters of 1 m beam diameter t 1000 km distance peak intensity of greater than 3.7 w/m2 ambient solar out to 2000 km
Membrane concentrated lasers
Increased divergence angle for return beam (smaller aperture)
Probe sizing between five grams to five kg
Lightweight membrane substrate within a carbon fiber circuit board…
Cubesat would include attitude control and payload
The chipsets would be far more effectiewith SCATTER than with a Cubesat
The life would be short so there is no need to worry about the durability, with self-centering capability focused on the probes themselves.
Actuated through controlled reflectivity panels
Separation rate governed by the ejection speed, no impact on the ability to leave the mother ship up to 1000 km
Within the orbital plane, gravity forces from the sun both remain lower than the sun up to 200 km of separation
SCATTER
Will characterize measurements to texture Uranian magnetosphere enabled by laser driven probes
Powertransfer and comm to…
Q: is the laser beam also being used to encode data into the beam?
A: the idea is to modulate the laser beams within the average. Times that it is turned off we can communicate the same way that laser communication devices do
Q: relation to Nelson and hyperbole objects?
A: as you get closer in, the solar becomes the big tradeoff, if energy is there, what sort of measurements can be made. Looking at alternative methods for power
Q: …
A: based on parameters of communication lasers, the power can be based on sliding nobs to change the ability of the device
Q: reuse?
A: single use, partially because radiation would be something of an issue
Q: could multiple beams form corners of a square or a triangle?
A: keep the beam and the laser emitter fairly simple, rather not deal with a phased array, hopefully looking at a fixed laser beam and see if the probe can fight orbital dynamics/ disturbance forces
Q: is disposable compatible with planetary protection measures?
A: stable vs. unstable manifolds, possibilities to use manifolds to constrain locations of the various probes
Q: radiation question, it still needs to survive to get there?
A: the radiation hardening could be placed on the dispenser, and shielding the more fragile spacecraft, right now with how sensitive the probe is and could be deployed given 5-10 grams if possible based on the chips that have been used in chips
Q: with a 20 watt laser how much power relative to tiny incident of light
A: if we start with something more conventional, we can start with something without much problem and at 1000-2000 km we look at 20-25 watts we look at 25% given the PV cells that we have seen thus far, in terms of the smaller chipsets, we will be capturing more like tens of kw. Some high power applications and designed have been made with cubesat
Q: lots tailored to the design and further applications
A: lots of various applications, in this sense what can and cannot use the laser, from chips to cubesat
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