Session
Technical Session VIII: Frank J. Redd Student Scholarship Competition
Abstract
The Relativistic Electron and Proton Telescope integrated little experiment (REPTile) instrument has been designed, built, and tested by a team of students at the University of Colorado. It is scheduled to launch on a 3U CubeSat, the Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment (CSSWE), this August, 2012. The instrument will take measurements of energetic particles in the near-Earth environment, which are vital to understand, predict, and mitigate hazardous space weather effects | an area identifed as a critical area of research by NASA's Living With a Star program. However, the task of designing a payload to return accurate and reliable data is extremely challenging due to the resource limitations imposed by a CubeSat platform. REPTile has undergone rigorous testing and calibration to verify its functionality and certify the validity of its measurements. This paper focuses on characterizing the telescope detectors and individual electronic components, as well as the integrated space craft system. The response to environmental conditions is quantified, and the variability minimized through on-board data handling as well as post-processing during mission operations. Thorough testing and calibration validates the data as a valuable contribution to outstanding questions in the study of space weather. The ability to address these questions by making differential energy measurements of energetic particles with an affordable, robust, and simple instrument design is what sets this instrument apart from others.
Presentation Slides
Characterization and Testing of an Energetic Particle Telescope for a CubeSat Platform
The Relativistic Electron and Proton Telescope integrated little experiment (REPTile) instrument has been designed, built, and tested by a team of students at the University of Colorado. It is scheduled to launch on a 3U CubeSat, the Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment (CSSWE), this August, 2012. The instrument will take measurements of energetic particles in the near-Earth environment, which are vital to understand, predict, and mitigate hazardous space weather effects | an area identifed as a critical area of research by NASA's Living With a Star program. However, the task of designing a payload to return accurate and reliable data is extremely challenging due to the resource limitations imposed by a CubeSat platform. REPTile has undergone rigorous testing and calibration to verify its functionality and certify the validity of its measurements. This paper focuses on characterizing the telescope detectors and individual electronic components, as well as the integrated space craft system. The response to environmental conditions is quantified, and the variability minimized through on-board data handling as well as post-processing during mission operations. Thorough testing and calibration validates the data as a valuable contribution to outstanding questions in the study of space weather. The ability to address these questions by making differential energy measurements of energetic particles with an affordable, robust, and simple instrument design is what sets this instrument apart from others.
