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          T H E  S P A R T N I K  Countdown...

     Your official newsletter from the San Jose State 

       University Microsatellite Design Laboratory



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                    November, 1997

                 Volume #2, Issue #1



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                 Announcements In Brief

            -------------------------------



        *  Lockheed Martin grant renewed!

        *  Shell painted and ready for solar cell string application

        *  Jeff Nokes named Mentor of the Month

        *  Spartnik website updated and moved!

        *  Team Spartnik briefs project status at

             Lockheed Martin, Nov. 19, 1997

        *  Team Spartnik presents poster at AAS National Meeting

        *  Lockheed Martin Safety Systems take a Spartnik tour 

        *  97-98 Spartnik Team announced! 



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PROJECT MISSION STATEMENT:



-> To educate undergraduate students in the process of managing

   and developing a microsatellite.

-> To prepare the students for successful careers in the

   Aerospace Community, by creating an industry-like project

   environment.

-> To bring the direct involvement of industry into the education

   process through mentorship and project alliances.



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_____________________________________________



How to contact us -



Prof. Hank Pernicka - (408) 924-4054

hank@voyager.engr.sjsu.edu



Systems Engineer: Jeffrey Lin - (415) 961-1191

lemond@pacbell.net

_____________________________________________



      +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

               Web Site Moving and Shaking!

      +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Spartnik web site has moved and can now be accessed at the URL



  www-engr.sjsu.edu/~pernicka/spartnik.html



The website now contains newsletter archives, the Spartnik Executive Summary,

and several reports.  The ADAC Subsystem page has also added an animation of

Spartnik's tumble while in orbit and more are on the way.  Any and all 

suggestions about the web site are very welcome!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++



      ********************************************

                Thanks From the SE! 

      ********************************************



A special thank you for the '96-'97 team:



The current '97-'98 Spartnik team would like to give a well deserved thanks

to the previous team for their mentoring and advice.  Their continued

support has proven to be an invaluable asset in assimilating the current

team into the project as well as providing key information and insight to

its progress.  Their guidance has also provided the current team with a

smooth transition from team to team, and has lowered our learning curve

dramatically.  Again, we thank you.



Jeffrey Lin

Systems Engineer



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             Briefings and More Briefings!

      ********************************************



The Aerospace Engineering faculty have always stressed the

importance of oral and written communications skills. Spartnik members

participate in many presentations during the year.  



SEPTEMBER

In September, Brian Menges and Carlos Guadiamos traveled to Logan, Utah, to

compete in the student paper session of the 11th Annual Conference on Small

Satellites.  They were the only undergraduates to place 3rd among graduate

students.  Way to go Carlos & Brian!



NOVEMBER

The Systems Safety group and Lockheed Martin has offered to help

Team Spartnik certify the safety of the spacecraft so that it can be

launched without risk to the launch vehicle or the primary payload.

Team Spartnik briefed the project status to this group on-site on 

November 19.  This was a great start to being mentored by this group!



DECEMBER

Noel de los Reyes, Robert Vickroy, Jeff Lin, and Francisco Soriano, along

with Dr. Pernicka, attended the American Astronautical Society annual

conference in Pasadena on December 3 to present the Spartnik project at a

poster session.  The poster was well-received and many useful comments

were given.



JANUARY

Brian Menges and Carlos Guadiamos stop by Reno, Nevada in January to compete

in the AIAA national student paper competition, as a result of winning the 

regional competition last March.  Good luck Carlos & Brian!





      ********************************************

                Welcome!! Welcome!!! Welcome!!!

      ********************************************



Team Spartnik would also like to extend a welcome to John VanArsdall and

Peter Danao as new members of the Computer Software subsystem.



The SJSU Aerospace Engineering AE 10 Freshman class (Intro. to Aerospace

Engineering) is now assisting the team in areas where they can contribute.

This is proving to be an excellent new method of mentorship and efficiency

on the team.  We welcome all of these students too!



>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> PROJECT STATUS <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<



@ ATTITUDE DETERMINATION AND CONTROL (ADAC) 

LEAD - Ruben Garza

TEAM - Tim Tapia, Stan Snow, Robbie Singh, Naresh Duggal



As of this point in time, most of the ADAC simulations have been run.  ADAC

still needs to run a simulation of Spartnik's full orbit which will require

some time.  A 2-D animation of Spartnik's tumble in orbit may be viewed on

the ADAC homepage of the Spartnik website.  ADAC is presently working on a

3-D animation of Spartnik in orbit as well as possibly doing an animation 

of the launch vehicle and the injection of Spartnik into orbit.  More 

quantitative modeling may also be underway in an effort to better visualize 

the predicted behavior of Spartnik tumble/spin and simplify post-launch 

analysis.  These may also be posted on the website as they are generated.



The magnet insertion process is complete.  Eight magnets were epoxied into the

shell to enable Spartnik to follow the Earth's magnetic field lines.





@ STRUCTURES

LEAD - Francisco Soriano

TEAM- Robert Vickroy, Edwin Manlucu



The flight model's shell has been shipped to Lockheed for installation of the

solar arrays along with the L-stand we fabricated.  Camera box drawings have

been finalized and sent to the machine shop for fabrication.  Structures

assisted with the magnet insertions into Spartnik's shell.  The Launch

Vehicle Adapter baseplate and Standoffs have been fabricated.  Structures is

presently modifying the antennas for rigidity during launch and expects to

complete camera box fabrication by the end of the semester.





@ PAYLOAD

LEAD - Noel de los Reyes

TEAM- Stan Snow, Patrick Arriola, Edwin Manlucu



Payload is presently acquiring the Rohacell polymethacrylimide foam.  It will

then be cut, applied, and adhered to the Kodak Digital Camera case structure

for vibration insulation during launch.  The camera and periscope designs are

finalized with only minor modifications remaining and are in the process of

machining.  The heat dissipation analysis and modeling for the Kodak Digital

Camera is pending.  Selection and final installation of the Copper Braid

diameter/length will be governed by LV&O and Thermal data in order to

preserve the appropriate rate of heat transfer and maximize camera life.

Payload expects to complete its tasks by April 98.



The Payload team, along with all of team Spartnik, would like to extend a

warm thank you to Chuck Heino, Paul Connors, and Charlie Balkon, of the

CSS Department, IBM Almaden Research Center, for their generous donation 

of instruments to our laboratory.  They have greatly contributed to the 

electronic hardware analysis capability of our team.  We expect these tools 

will be greatly needed during many of the testing phases for Spartnik!! Paul

is also an Aerospace Engineering alumnus from the days when Spartnik was

just a rumor!  





@ POWER (EPS)

LEAD- Robert Vickroy

TEAM- Neal Houston, Noel de los Reyes, Edwin Manlucu



The EPS subsystem has completed, to date, the solar array strand analysis and

review of electrical wiring diagrams.  EPS has also conducted an initial test

of the power-duty cycle for the Eagle Picher cells and acquired needed

hardware for construction.   Presently, they are acquiring the flight model's

batteries, the solar array diodes, and FET switches.  Remaining tasks include

the wiring harness layout and integration of the the computer hardware with

all subsystems.



@ THERMAL

LEAD- Ron Corey

TEAM- Tim Tapia, Noel de los Reyes



The Thermal subsystem is coming up to speed on the use of SINDA modeling and

expects completion by the time the next newsletter is released.  TCS is also

calibrating the thermocouples that are to be placed in Spartnik.  A circuit

to test the thermocouples  is being built for this purpose.  Future TCS

projects remaining include the painting of Spartnik's top and bottom plates

and the application of the FOSR pending completion of the SINDA analysis.



@ LAUNCH VEHICLE AND ORBIT

LEAD- Ruben Garza

TEAM- Jeff Lin, Francisco Soriano, Robert Vickroy



The LV/Orbit subsystems group is still diligently searching for a launch

vehicle.  The team is presently exploring some leads with Lockheed

Martin,  Mitsubishi Heavy Industries H2, and the Kosmos launch vehicle, as well

as several other sources.  Orbital simulations have been completed and may 

be modified pending future information on launch opportunities.  The hazard

safety analysis will also begin shortly to verify Spartnik for a launch

opportunity, with help from Lockheed Martin industry mentors.



@ COMPUTER SOFTWARE 

LEAD- Jeff Nokes

TEAM- Keiko Endo, Peter Danao, John Van Arsdall, John Bargamian, John

Robison,  Eric Chuav



John Robinson:

John's work continues on the OS that will run the OBC.  He is testing the

functionality of his code on a SUN workstation; the use of Sun-Threads is

necessary to simulate our OS as a true multitasking environment.  We will be

purchasing either a SUN workstation for our lab or the SUN Solaris X-86

software for the PC used in the groundstation.  This will assist John in his

testing and implementation.



John Bargamian:

John is currently finishing his code with the file system, getting ready to

demo it in the near future.  He will be working with Keiko and John Van

Arsdall in assisting them with the coding of the SDLC module.  He is  
 
also setting up the logic analyzer for use to test our soon to be

wire-wrapped OBC test board.



Keiko Endo:

Keiko is currently working on her AX.25 module.  She is understanding her

task well and will soon be on her way to finishing her code.  It will

definitely be exciting to test her module once completed.



John Van Arsdall:

John is a new addition to the Spartnik software team.  He is currently

learning the satellite systems, and studying the CPU software architecture to

become familiar with the low-level device drivers he will be coding.   

 He is also studying the specifications for the PACSAT layer, which he will

be working in conjunction with the SDLC module.  We are very happy to have

him aboard!



Peter Danao:

Peter is also a recent addition to the team.  He has been tasked to

developing the camera module.  He is currently studying the camera's hardware

and use, and is researching it's functionality.  He is developing

specifications to begin coding the camera software module.



Eric Chua:

Eric is also a new addition to the software team.  He is a prior student on

the Spartnik project who has volunteered his efforts to continue with making

Spartnik a reality.  He is working with Peter Danao on the camera module.

Eric was involved with the Payload subsystem in a previous academic year on

Spartnik. He is very familiar with the camera and how it operates.  He will

definitely be a tremendous asset while developing the camera module.



Jeff Nokes:

Jeff is currently working on the groundstation software.  Also, he is

continuing with the ongoing process of developing specifications for the

overall operation of Spartnik, and the Command Shell that will be in use.

He has began work on the Command Database and Telemetry Database

documentation, and is currently creating the specifications for those

particular modules.  Also, he is still working with industry mentor Ron

Fischler in managing the Spartnik Computer group and with Dr. Stephen 

Peterson in developing the OBC hardware and the transponder hardware.



@ COMPUTER HARDWARE

LEAD- Jeff Nokes



The the On-board Computer (OBC) is currently being wire-wrapped.  We still 

have to acquire additional dip hardware for the OBC test board and finalize 

a list for the surface-mount or SO chips.   We are going to study the possibility 

of increasing the size of the RAMDISK from 4 to 6 Megs (the hardware design 

can support up to 16 Megs - available power is the constraint).  Dr. Peterson,

who is the mastermind behind the hardware design,  is working hard to get the 

OBC tested and functioning.  Also, Jeff Nokes is going to perform a "milspec" 

vs. "standard" price comparison for all flight hardware.  The more we can 

guarantee against radiation damage, the better (as long as we can afford it).

The Logic Analyzer has been acquired and John Bargamian is getting  it ready 

for our OBC.  More donated equipment has been received (i.e. DC-power supplies, 

O-scopes, etc.)  Thanks to the IBM folks who donated the equipment, as

it will be a tremendous asset.  The final wiring inputs to/from the computer

box will be derived as the organization of components comes together.



We are currently looking for a graduate student to perform an intense study

of the RF radiation pattern of Spartnik's antennas.  Preliminary research

has shown that the pattern will be fine for the types of orbits we are   

considering, but we do wish to confirm this!



@ GROUNDSTATION

LEAD- Jeff Nokes



The groundstation computer has recently been upgraded from a 486-4X100 to a

Pentium.  A new SCSCI II drive has been added to replace the old,

malfunctioning one.  Jeff Lin and Geoff Andrews have been instrumental in

installing the hardware and software to get the system up and running.   In

the near future, we can utilize it to run tests with current microsatellites

in orbit and to test the groundstation application.





}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{



         }}}}}  Mentor of the Month  {{{{{{

         

                   JEFF NOKES



            }}}}}}}}}}}}{{{{{{{{{{{{



Team Spartnik has named Jeff Nokes mentor of the month!  Jeff has

continuously provided outstanding guidance and advising to the team 

which has greatly contributed to the progress of the Tracking 

Telemetry & Control Subsystem. 



Team Spartnik salutes you!  Thanks Jeff!



}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{







*******************************************************



           *****Sponsor of the Month****



         Lockheed Martin Missiles and Space



           ******************************



Team Spartnik would like to extend a very special thanks to Lockheed Martin

for their continuous support of our program objectives.  Recently, Lockheed

Martin has renewed Spartnik's grant and contributed greatly to this year's

financial needs.

Thanks Lockheed Martin!

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About Our Newsletter...



The purpose of this newsletter is to inform industry and universities about

what is happening with San Jose State's Spartnik project.  This bimonthly

newsletter is distributed, via email, to those who contributed, sponsored or

expressed interest in this project.  Feel free to forward this newsletter to

any colleagues.  If you want to be added to (or removed from) the

distribution list or have questions or comments about the project or

newsletter, send the information to: hank@voyager.engr.sjsu.edu



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SPECIAL THANKS TO.......



Over the past few years, many companies and individuals have contributed in

some way to project Spartnik thus making it a reality for many students. The

team members and the Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Department faculty

would like to thank the following:



Lockheed Martin Missiles and Space

IBM Research

Richmond Aircraft Products

Space Systems/Loral

Applied Solar Energy Corp.

United Technologies Corp. - Chemical Systems Division

Optical Coating Laboratory Inc.

Shur-Lok Corporation

Satellite Power Corp.

Teledyne Corp.

Kodak

Logitech

Eagle Picher

Phillips Semiconductor

Teklam

Kajon Inc.

Advanced Industrial Coatings

Stanford University - SSDL



    ........for their contributions... Thank you.

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End Transmission -  Volume #2, Issue #1, November 1997

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