Session
Technical Session V: Advanced Technologies Section II
Abstract
Radios are a necessity for every spacecraft mission, yet there is no existing family of radios specifically designed for nanosatellite-class spacecraft. Conventional spacecraft radios typically try to address a wide range of missions with a single design. As a result, they often tend toward higher complexity, mass, power consumption and cost, making them less than ideal for use in small spacecraft, where mass, volume and power constraints are typically severe. AeroAstro’s Modular S-Band Radio Suite (MSBRS) is intended to specifically address this otherwise neglected market. The MSBRS is a set of very small, inexpensive radio modules designed to enhance cost, volume, and mass efficiencies for 1 to 30 kilogram nanosatellites. AeroAstro is developing the MSBRS for nanosatellites using a cost-effective mixture of commercial-off-the-shelf components with proven design methods and innovative satellite engineering. Through its modular design, the MSBRS provides significantly more flexibility to tailor the radio to the needs of each particular mission. For example, if a mission needs more transmitted power to meet its link budget, then the appropriate high-power amplifier module is incorporated into the “stack” of modules comprising the complete radio. MSBRS provides only what the mission requires and doesn't burden the spacecraft with unnecessary and unused capabilities.
The Modular S-Band Radio Suite
Radios are a necessity for every spacecraft mission, yet there is no existing family of radios specifically designed for nanosatellite-class spacecraft. Conventional spacecraft radios typically try to address a wide range of missions with a single design. As a result, they often tend toward higher complexity, mass, power consumption and cost, making them less than ideal for use in small spacecraft, where mass, volume and power constraints are typically severe. AeroAstro’s Modular S-Band Radio Suite (MSBRS) is intended to specifically address this otherwise neglected market. The MSBRS is a set of very small, inexpensive radio modules designed to enhance cost, volume, and mass efficiencies for 1 to 30 kilogram nanosatellites. AeroAstro is developing the MSBRS for nanosatellites using a cost-effective mixture of commercial-off-the-shelf components with proven design methods and innovative satellite engineering. Through its modular design, the MSBRS provides significantly more flexibility to tailor the radio to the needs of each particular mission. For example, if a mission needs more transmitted power to meet its link budget, then the appropriate high-power amplifier module is incorporated into the “stack” of modules comprising the complete radio. MSBRS provides only what the mission requires and doesn't burden the spacecraft with unnecessary and unused capabilities.
