36 / 82
Figure 1: The WUSAT 3 ICARUS project showing three CubeSats
stacked on top of each other with a deployable antenna array
Figure 2. (a) Circuit simulation model and (b) Actual
measurement vs. simulation.
Cubesat satellite, a nanosatellite,
typically a cube 0.1m wide, with a mass
of less than 1.33kg. In April 2013, its
first Cubesat (WUSAT1) was launched
via a high-altitude weather balloon to
an altitude of 30km in order to test its
systems in a harsh environment where
the ambient temperature dropped
to lower than -50°C, prior to future
rocket launches. WUSAT2 launched in
2015 carrying a spectroscopy payload
to an altitude of 90km as part of the
prestigious DLR/SNSB project REXUS
(Rocket Experiment for University
Students).
For WUSAT 3, the ICARUS project,
designed for deployment from the
ISS in 2018, the team has opted for
a three-unit design, effectively three
CubeSats stacked on top of each
other. At the top end of the device is
a deployable antenna array, which will
be the receiver for the ICARUS signals.
(See figure 1)
As mentioned at the top of this article,
the small size and challenging operating
conditions experienced in space
applications require the electronic
systems used to be extremely rugged.
At launch, systems can be subject to
several G shock forces, and when in
orbit, temperatures can vary from very
cold to extremely hot, depending on
the position of the satellite relative
to the sun. Electronic interconnection
systems are especially vulnerable,
since they must not only guarantee the
integrity of the electrical signal, they
also have a physical role to play.
Size and weight are always determining
issues in any space application: the
smaller and lighter the components
the greater the payload can be…and
in a tiny nanosatellite, this becomes
even more important. Then there is
also the economic consideration. In
space terms, Cubesats are relatively
inexpensive. But they still cost
thousands of pounds to develop and
launch, and there is no opportunity to
fix any problem once launched. Simply,
the connectors must not fail.
Since its inception WUSAT has chosen
to use high reliability connectors
from Harwin. The company uses a
36 l New-Tech Magazine Europe