Cosmic Radiation Deflection for CubeSat Application

Cosmic radiation consists of high energy protons and atomic fragments that hurtle through space at near the speed of light. These particles originate from the Sun, from within the Milky Way, and even from distant galaxies. These particles move at incredible speeds of up to 99.999% light speed and are classified as ionizing radiation. Ionizing radiation wreaks havoc on electronic equipment and can cause cancer in humans. Because of this, cosmic radiation poses a serious hazard for space travel. On Earth, the magnetic field protects us from this radiation so well that it can barely be detected at ground level. In space or on the Moon or Mars the magnetic fields are too weak to offer this protection.

The experiment being conducted by the CubeSat team at RIT involves using a high strength magnetic field to deflect the incoming cosmic radiation. The magnetic field will create a shield that will protect equipment from radiation hazards, akin to the way the Earth’s magnetic field protects its inhabitants. The experiment will be conducted in two main phases. First on the ground, and then in Low Earth Orbit (LEO).

Currently the team is in the first phase of the experiment working to develop an ideal magnetic field shape which is generated using a cubic array of Neodymium magnets. The magnets are arranged on a custom-built testing apparatus which is capable of a variety of positions and configurations. The magnets will be placed in front of a Geiger-Muller counter which can measure the amount of radiation. The team will first deflect Beta radiation from a Strontium-90 source which will represent an ideal condition since these particles deflect roughly 100 times more easily than their cosmic counterparts, which have much larger mass and energy.

In the following semesters, the team will implement the same setup on a cube satellite to test the effect of the shielding on real cosmic radiation. The experiment will need to be miniaturized, as well as possibly changing the radiation detector to a scintillation crystal type detector.  

This experiment is unique since it is drastically different than traditional approaches to radiation shielding using dense mass shielding like lead. In the case of strong cosmic radiation, serious issues can arise when using mass shielding. In particular some of the cosmic particles may have so much energy that mass shielding can result in the scattering (spallation) of far worse particles. Using the technique of magnetic deflection avoids this problem entirely since nothing will be directly interacting with the particles other than the magnetic field.  Another issue with mass shielding is that it is much heavier than a magnetic shielding device.  The CubeSat team believes that this experiment has the potential to reduce the damaging effects of cosmic radiation for equipment and personal while traveling in space or when operating on the Moon or on Mars.

At Imagine RIT, the cube satellite team will display infographics on how the experiment works, as well as the math that goes on behind the scenes. There test stand with magnets will be on display, along with the Geiger counter which will be hooked up to a laptop displaying a live feed of the ambient background radiation. There will also be various MATLAB programs on display which calculate magnetic field strength. The Cube Satellite team has also become a part of the BluShift-MaxIQ suborbital launch challenge where we are tasked with designing a small 10x10x2cm payload which will be launched sub-orbitally in late august. The board for this payload will be on display, along with information about the launch. It will be the first time an RIT team has sent a project into outer space!

RIT Space Exploration (SPEX) is a community of people who are passionate about space. We are students of varied majors and fields of expertise united by our love of space exploration.

SPEX helps our members develop their technical skills through workshops and project experience. Our current projects include Rovers, Cubesat, and Virtual Reality. Rovers is looking to build a rover for competition in this summer’s University Rover Challenge (URC) hosted by the Mars Society. Cubesat is currently designing an experiment to test radiation shielding using magnets in Low Earth Orbit. Finally, Virtual Reality is working with Unreal Engine to create space scenes in VR. All of the above projects were proposed by our members and SPEX works together to make them a reality. In addition to SPEX’s projects, we also have the Astrodynamics team which often hosts observation nights in addition to various side projects.

The funds raised in this campaign will be used by the Rovers, Cubesat, and Astrodynamics teams to fund their projects. Possible areas of spending include purchasing raw materials, components, payment for manufacturing jobs, payment for competition fees, and travel costs to and from competitions. More specifically, Rovers will be using funds from this campaign to pay for travel costs for the URC competition located in Utah, purchasing sensors for the science team as they find a way to detect life using soil samples, and purchasing other miscellaneous components and materials needed by the other sub-teams. The Cubesat team will be using funds from this campaign to build a testbed for their radiation experiment. This will include purchasing Geiger counters, raw materials for the testbed, and electronics to run the testbed. Astrodynamics will use funds from this campaign to continue work on their side projects and host additional events throughout the academic year.

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It is truly a wonderful opportunity to equip students with tools for success in the aerospace industry. However, providing these services to students comes at a financial cost. Creating payloads for high altitude balloons (HAB), maintaining our telescopes, and satellite development is expensive and we need your help to continue to offer this invaluable service to students. We ask you to consider a small donation to our group so we can help students reach for the stars.

Thank you for your support!

Hello to all incoming and returning students! If you are interested in space and want to find out about what we are all about, come and join us at our meetings. General meetings for SPEX are on Saturdays from 11:00-12:00 in HLC 14-2575/2585. We look forward to seeing you there!

To learn more about SPEX look at our get involved page for more information, send us an email at spex.rit@gmail.com, or join our discord channel.

Hello to all incoming and returning students! This semester we are finally back in-person!

If you are interested in space and want to find out about what we are all about, come and join us at our upcoming info sessions. We will be holding info sessions on September 3rd and 8th at 5pm in HLC 14-2575/2585.  There we will introduce new members to the history of SPEX, what our current and future projects are, and how you can get involved in SPEX. We look forward to seeing you there!

To learn more about SPEX look at our get involved page for more information, send us an email at spex.rit@gmail.com, or join our slack channel.

We are back for the Spring!  If you are interested in joining RIT Space Exploration for the Spring then please stop by our first general meeting of the semester!  The meeting is scheduled for 1/30/2021 at 11am, during our normal weekly time, and will be online via Zoom.  We will be going over project teams for this semester, fun events you can expect to see, as well as introducing the new admin team.

 
More information can be found on the Get Involved page and I hope to see you all there!

Hello incoming freshman and returning students! We hope you all have been staying safe and healthy over these last few months.

Every fall we try to host information sessions for new members who are interested in learning more about SPEX. If you are passionate about the space industry, are curious about what we do, or interested in joining our community then I would encourage you to attend one of the two info sessions we have coming up. Here we plan to go over what SPEX is, what we have accomplished in the past, and what you can expect if you do decide to join our group.

Take a look at our get involved page for more information and any questions can be directed to spex.rit@gmail.com. Hope to see you all there!

The RIT SPEX rovers team has been hard at work building a next generation rover for entry for the university rover challenge and is excited to report on their progress. The University Rover Challenge (URC) is the world's premier rover competition for college students. Held annually in the desert of southern Utah in the United States, URC challenges student teams to design and build the next generation of Mars rovers that will one day work alongside astronauts exploring the Red Planet. SPEX is building a rover to compete in 2021.

The mechanical team has put a lot of work into upgrading mini rover. The team has changed the suspension and are adding a differential bar as a learning exercise to practice for the URC bot. The team has also started work on the CAD model and has been working with the wheels of the bot.

The electrical team has begun work on building the power delivery system for the rover. This includes the charge controller, fuses, power rails and more. It is an evolution of the system that was built for mini-rover that improves in scale and capability. The team has also fit mini-rover with several upgrades so the software team can test out some of the new features and parts that we will be using on the new rover.

The software team has been hard at work. The team has built a mock-up of the base station as well as built models in OpenCV for object detection. The team has also integrated a 360° LiDAR scanner with our systems on the mini-rover. Using the LiDAR Scanner and video data, the team has begun to work on higher level autonomy for the rover. The development of these features are critical to the teams success in the autonomous parts of the university rover challenge.

In order to ensure quality competition performance, RIT SPEX has partnered with RIT Robotics Club (MDRC). The teams have split the work with SPEX handling the rover chassis + related items and MDRC building the manipulator arm. MDRC has made fantastic progress with the arm so far. The team has used iterations of 3D-printed prototypes to improve their design.

The long-tem vision of this project is to open RIT Space Exploration up to a new area of projects. Robotics and rovers are at the core of deep space exploration and most science missions. The competition features very competitive and expensive rovers. These rovers feature autonomous navigation, fine control robotics, a scientific drill and more. It is a worthy long term goal.

This year we are seeking funding for:

• Our Rovers team competing in the 2021 University Rover Challenge Robotics (URC) Competition. Learn about it here

• Our IREC team competing in the 2020 Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC). Learn about it here

• Developing RIT's first CubeSat. Learn about it here

• Funds for our so our Astrodynamics team can continue to support the RIT observatory. Learn about it here

It is truly a wonderful opportunity to equip students with tools for success in the aerospace industry. However, providing these services to students comes at a financial cost. Creating payloads for high altitude balloons (HAB), maintaining our telescopes, and satellite development is expensive and we need your help to continue to offer this invaluable service to students. We ask you to consider a small donation to our group so we can help students reach for the stars.

SPEX is doing two new member orientations before the first general meeting. This is an optional but great opportunity to learn about what we do. Both are open to anyone interested in attending.

SPEX New member orientation 1
When: Tue, August 27, 6pm – 7pm
Where: HLC 2575 (map)

SPEX New member orientation 2
When: Wed, August 28, 4pm – 5pm
Where: HLC 2575 (map)

SPEX General Meeting #1

The first General Meeting for RIT SPEX will be Saturday, Aug 31, 2019 11:00 AM in Hugh L. Carey Hall. It will last approximately 1 hour with a brief new member orientation as well as some time dedicated to the project teams. There is also an optional lunch at Salsa's / Cantina afterwards to which everyone is cordially invited.

Fall Projects

CubeSat
As many of you might know, one of the reason that RIT SPEX was founded 5 years ago was to work on RIT's first satellite. This fall, building on past SPEX projects like CSLI and $50SAT, SPEX will begin work on a CubeSat project of this magnitude. This will be a multi-semester effort and is RIT SPEX's most ambitious project yet.

IREC 2020
This summer SPEX will be returning to the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC). This time our payload will be even more ambitious. SPEX will be launching SPEXTRO, an protein spectroscopy experiment based on a multidisciplinary senior design project that never had the chance to fly.

Rovers
The rovers team will be taking all of the experience and knowledge put towards building the mini-Rover and will begin work on a URC-ready (University Rover Challenge) rover. The team has already been meeting over the summer to plan for this project.

Vacuum Chamber
To assist with CubeSat, IREC and other future projects SPEX will be building a vacuum chamber. This will allow us to test space hardware in a space-like environment easily and cost effectively.

Astrodynamics
The Astrodynamics team has a busy fall ahead of them. A number of projects will be worked on including repairing the roll-off motor at the RIT observatory, working on the radio telescope project, a computer-vision based star mapping software, as well as some other modifications to the RIT observatory and some other learning projects.

This year we are seeking funding for:

• Our Rovers team competing in the 2021 University Rover Challenge Robotics (URC) Competition. Learn about it here

• Our IREC team competing in the 2020 Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC). Learn about it here

• Developing a next generation High Altitude Balloon payload. Learn about it here

• Funds for our so our Astrodynamics team can continue to support the RIT observatory. Learn about it here

It is truly a wonderful opportunity to equip students with tools for success in the aerospace industry. However, providing these services to students comes at a financial cost. Creating payloads for high altitude balloons (HAB), maintaining our telescopes, and satellite development is expensive and we need your help to continue to offer this invaluable service to students. We ask you to consider a small donation to our group so we can help students reach for the stars.

Astrodynamics differs from the other SPEX teams because it focuses on many different smaller projects rather than one singular large project. Last semester, the team started doing work for the RIT Observatory in the form of two projects. The Observatory has two domes, one is a roll-off type where the entire roof is moved off of the building to allow viewing access to the sky. The current situation is that this is done with a crank, where more than one person is needed. The team fixed the currently installed motor to automate this process, but it cannot be used until the motor is slowed down to a safe speed and a warning system is implemented. This will allow for easier access to this dome, enabling more students to use the fairly large telescope inside. The team is still testing the system to fully understand the motor before modifying it, but preliminary designs have been made and will be perfected during the semester.

The other project is a continuation of a Multidisciplinary Senior Design (MSD) project from a recent year. The MSD team designed a latch arm assembly to be implemented in the main dome at the observatory. This is the first step to automating the dome and enabling remote observing in the future. There is a power draw issue and some coding implementation still needed. SPEX members have started testing and rewriting the code, and strive to have the system working, if not implemented by the end of the semester.

This semester, as cold weather prevents immediate work at the Observatory, the Astrodynamics team is designing and building a simple radio telescope. When most think of astronomy, they think of optical telescopes, but most science is actually done in different wavelengths that we cannot see, an example is radio waves. The sun emits radio waves, as well as satellites in the sky which are too dim to see. The team’s base goal is to design a simple radio telescope on a stand that we can detect strength of radio waves with. The next goal is to implement work done from previous years on automating the stand with stepper motors. Lastly, coding the entire system to allow for radio images is a long term goal that may be done this semester.

SPEX Astrodynamics hosts observation nights as well, where members get to use our telescopes to observe the night sky. This is weather permitting, but maintenance on our telescopes is ongoing, and students get to learn about how these systems work by hands on experience in fixing and using these systems. Observation nights are, as always, open to anyone who is interested in exploring the night sky with us.

HAB 5 with PLANTHAB

SPEX has already completed multiple successful missions involving the High Altitude Balloon since its establishment. High Altitude Balloons are autonomous balloons sent up to 100,000 feet and serve as research platforms for a variety of purposes. HAB5 will be building upon previous projects completed by the SPEX HAB team. The HAB being sent up this semester on April 27th , 2019, will fly the Plant Life Automatic NDVI with Telemetry from a High Altitude Balloon (PLANTHAB) payload module. PLANTHAB will utilize infrared imaging to measure vegetation density, while also demonstrating on-board image processing and computer vision techniques using low cost components.

Rover

Building on the design work the team completed last semester, SPEX will be finishing construction on the rover. The electrical and suspension systems are already coming together as the first parts are in. The rover is set to include a rocker-bogie suspension mechanism alongside the required motors, piloting equipment, GPS, power regulation, and communications systems.

Astrodynamics Observatory Projects

Astrodynamics differs from the other SPEX teams because it focuses on many different smaller projects rather than one singular large project. Last semester, the team started doing work for the RIT Observatory in the form of two projects. The Observatory has two domes, one is a roll-off type where the entire roof is moved off of the building to allow viewing access to the sky. As well as the observatory projects SPEX will also begin research on constructing a radio telescope.

IREC 2019 with SPEXTRO

SPEX will continue its work that was started in the fall. SPEX will be participating in the SDL Payload Challenge at the Spaceport America Cup . A 3U CubeSat-like payload featuring a protein spectroscopy experiment will be launched and recovered. The payload is dubbed Spectroscopy Protein EXperiment Through Reaction Observation (SPEXTRO). The Space Dynamics Laboratory (SDL) payload challenge is held at the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC) in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The SDL payload challenge is a sub competition at IREC designed to encourage participants to create payloads that accomplish a relevant function and provide useful learning opportunities. The goal of the payload experiment is to test how high acceleration and zero net acceleration (free-fall) affects the folding of proteins.

CubeSat SolarSail and Asteria Return Module

Every academic year, SPEX is the primary customer for multidisciplinary senior design (MSD) projects at RIT. SPEX allows students who are interested in working on an aerospace related project to fulfill their senior design project requirement with a project of their choice that aligns with the goals and needs of SPEX. These projects range from prototype arcjet thrusters and vibration test stands, to deployable satellite solar panels and High Altitude Balloon platforms. SPEX members and advisors are involved in the review process. This year SPEX is sponsoring two such projects. Learn more here!

How do projects get approved?

Projects come from our members. Anyone can submit a project in the form of a Project Definition Document (PDD). The intent of a Project Definition Document (PDD) is to organize and document a project idea and its objectives. In the ideal project life cycle, an idea undergoes an initial research phase where a project Champion and their small team develops the primary objectives and requirements. The PDD is a snapshot of the known challenges, risks, and anticipated areas for research at the very start of a project.

All of the Project Definition Documents as well as thorough documentation can be found on out GitHub here.

A URC Rover, 2017 Credit: marssociety.org/ ☍

Why Rovers?

Rovers are created to land on another planet, besides Earth, to find out information and to take samples. They can collect dust, rocks, and even take pictures. They are very useful for exploring the universe. Robotics and by extension rovers are a tremendously important part of space exploration. The purpose of the rovers project is to assess and assert the capability of RIT SPEX regarding the construction and fabrication of a mock-rover and then begin construction. This project will look at the unknowns, technical challenges, project management, and member skills of RIT Space Exploration in regard to a University Rover Challenge (URC) capable rover and rover construction. The URC is hosted by The Mars Society annually.

What is the University Rover Challenge

The University Rover Challenge (URC) is the world's premier robotics competition for college students. Held annually in the desert of southern Utah in the United States, URC challenges student teams to design and build the next generation of Mars rovers that will one day work alongside astronauts exploring the Red Planet. marssociety.org/ ☍

What will RIT SPEX be building?

The goal of this project is delivering a functioning rover. We define rover as a vehicle for driving over rough terrain, especially one driven by remote control. The rover will allow the team to develop skills and knowledge to build a more feature complete rover to complete in the URC in the future. The team will work on fabrication and design, autonomous navigation, electrical system design, rover testing, computer vision, and robotics.

The rover will be testing using events designed like the URC but scaled down to fit the scope of this rover. We will be using time as a metric as well as binary metrics for completion of the parts of the competition. Some features might behave differently than expected or planned these features will be evaluated accordingly. This includes ’does the rocker-bogie system works as intended’, ’will the rover stop when directed at an obstacle’, etc.

Long-Term Vision

The long-term vision of this project is to open RIT Space Exploration up to a new area of projects and development. Robotics and rovers are at the core of deep space exploration and most science missions. The project is also intended to lead into a future rover project with expanded capabilities. The University Rover Challenge is hosted by the Mars Society. It features very competitive and expensive rovers. These rovers feature autonomous navigation, fine control robotics, scientific drill and more. It is a worthy long term goal.

How do projects get approved?

Projects come from our members. Anyone can submit a project in the form of a Project Definition Document (PDD). The intent of a Project Definition Document (PDD) is to organize and document a project idea and its objectives. In the ideal project life cycle, an idea undergoes an initial research phase where a project Champion and their small team develops the primary objectives and requirements. The PDD is a snapshot of the known challenges, risks, and anticipated areas for research at the very start of a project.

All of the Project Definition Documents as well as thorough documentation can be found on out GitHub here.

Overview

The SDL/IREC team here in SPEX are working on an entry into this years SDL payload challenge at the Spaceport America Cup 2019. The project, dubbed SPEXTRO (Spectroscopy Protein EXperiment Through Reaction Observation) aims to create a microfluidic spectroscopy platform contained within a 3U (10x10x30cm) CubeSat frame. The experiment in particular is aimed at studying the effects of freefall on proteins using microfluidic spectroscopy. That is, the branch of science concerned with the investigation and measurement of spectra produced when matter interacts with or emits electromagnetic radiation. During the competition, the experiment will be launched to a target altitude of 10,000 feet on a sounding rocket developed independently from RIT Space Exploration.

The Competition

The SDL payload competition is held by Space Dynamic Laboratories in Las Cruces, New Mexico at the Spaceport America Cup alongside the Intercollegiate Rocket Engineering Competition (IREC). The SDL payload challenge pits universities from across the world against each other. It is judged on the following criteria:

• Scientific or Technical Objective(s)
• Payload Construction and Overall Professionalism
• Readiness / Turnkey Operation
• Execution of Objective(s)
• SDL Judging Criteria

SPEX coming into the competition this year has the ability to leverage what was learned after competing in the SDL payload challenge last year. During the competition last year, SPEX launched a payload named Hyperion in collaboration with another organization on campus which supplied the launch vehicle. Hyperion, also a 3U CubeSat form factor aimed to fit the role as a “black box” or launch qualification platform for sounding rockets. During the launch, Hyperion reached an altitude of 9,990 feet, and successfully accomplished almost all of the goals for the project except final ground recovery.

The Experiment

The experiment for this year’s project is a spinoff of a Multidisciplinary Senior Design (MSD) project designed and developed by now alumni members of SPEX. SPEXTRO aims to build on what was accomplished by the MSD team during the 2015/2016 academic year. This year’s project aims to operate in freefall where the MSD project was conceptualized as operating in low earth orbit. Although the environments are and conditions are different, a “microgravity” can still be achieved in freefall.

During the flight, lyophilized (freeze dried) proteins will activate in a solution contained within a microfluidic chamber. Once activated, the proteins will be in freefall and should start showing signs of folding. During this time, spectroscopy will be performed on the microfluidic chamber containing the now activated proteins. Data from the photovoltaic sensors (used for spectroscopy) will be logged and transmitted to the command and control systems for safekeeping.

The protein to be used will contain the amino acid Tryptophan. Tryptophan is one of the few amino acids which fluoresces under certain wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation, thus being crucial in determining whether the protein has folded or not. The folding of these proteins will have a direct effect on the structure of the protean which would change how much Tryptophan is exposed to the electromagnetic radiation, thus driving readings from the photovoltaic sensors.

Sometime before the experiment has been performed in freefall, a control experiment will be conducted on the ground under the same environmental conditions. This control will help to eliminate any noise or additional effects on the proteins not due to microgravity.

Project Goals

The team this year aims to not gain or contribute any knowledge not understood by the scientific community, but to prove such an experiment can be done within a CubeSat as a technology demonstration. Experiments like the one in SPEXTRO have been done by scientific organizations across the globe. Given results from previous experiments done on proteins in microgravity, the project team has an opportunity to further validate or disqualify results from SPEXTRO.

Additional Links

All competition results from 2018
Hyperion GitHub Repo
SPEXTRO GitHub Repo