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April 24, 2017
Launchspace Training
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| |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  | Space-Based Space Surveillance (Special from Launchspace Staff Writers) Bethesda, MD - The Space Based Space Surveillance (SBSS) system was planned to be a constellation of satellites and supporting ground infrastructure that improves the ability of the U.S. government to detect and track orbiting objects around the Earth. The primary mission is to detect and identify certain orbiting objects that might represent future threats to U.S. space assets. This process is known as space situational awareness (SSA) and its purpose is to help accomplish future space control capabilities. The first SBSS satellite in the series was considered a pathfinder spacecraft and is, in fact, a follow-on mission to the Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration of the Space Based Visible (SBV) sensor that was flown on the MSX (Mid-Course Space Experiment) mission on April 24, 1996. The SBV sensor ceased operations in late 2008 after more than 12 years of successful operations.
The objective of the SBSS pathfinder mission is detect and track orbiting space objects (optical sensing), including potential threats to America's space assets and orbital debris. This was intended to be the first satellite in the SBSS System that would eventually lead to a constellation of satellites to detect and track orbiting space objects in a timely manner. The whole idea of SBSS was to keep a much closer watch on space from space itself. At the time of launch there was an estimated 1,000 functioning satellites and about 20,000 pieces of debris orbiting Earth.
The overall objective of SSA is to know the location of every object orbiting the Earth, to know why it is there, what it is doing now, and predict what it will be doing in the future. This knowledge is needed to protect the extensive investment in space assets for weather, reconnaissance, navigation, and communications.
Satellites from every nation naturally cluster in preferred orbits: LEO (Low Earth Orbit) for weather, reconnaissance and cellular telephony services, MEO (Medium Earth Orbit) for Global Positioning Systems, and GEO (Geostationary Orbit) for intercontinental communications. These popular orbits are littered with spent rockets, dead satellites and thousands of other bits of debris that are hazards to space operations. By charting and tracking, SSA helps protect space assets and ensures safe operations by providing warnings of potential hazards in a timely manner.
The greatest challenge to SSA is the existence of totally unknown RSOs (Resident Space Objects) in space. These are natural objects like meteorites, debris from launch vehicles, or debris broken off from already orbiting assets. The proliferation of debris in space constitutes one of the primary threats to the safe operation of spacecraft.
The U.S. SSN (Space Surveillance Network) relies on ground-based radars and optical telescopes around the world to track thousands of objects in space. But their monitoring abilities are limited by weather, the atmosphere and, in the case of telescopes, daylight. In addition, these instruments can only get intermittent glimpses of orbiting objects as they pass overhead. The SSN is made up of sensors, communications links, processing centers, and data distribution channels. The sensors are a conglomeration of capabilities mostly derived from and shared by other missions, but few of the sensors were developed for the express purpose of conducting space surveillance. A key element of SSN is the GEODSS (Ground-based, Electro-optical Deep Space Surveillance) system, a network of three telescopes linked to video cameras trained on, and looking for movement in, star fields. In place since the early 1970s.
After MSX completed its four-year initial mission for the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization the spacecraft was transferred to the Air Force Space Command in October 2000, becoming the Air Force's first operational space-borne sensor to track and monitor objects in orbit around Earth.
The following years of SBV observations on MSX have proven valuable because the quality of these observations has contributed to the maintenance of an accurate catalog of RSOs. The wide FOV of the SBV sensor allowed efficient search operations and simultaneous multiple detections of RSOs. Surveillance data were collected in a sidereal tracking mode, in which the stars appeared as point sources and the RSOs appeared as streaks. Routine surveillance data were then processed through the MSX onboard signal processor to extract the star and streak information.
________________________________________________________________________________ Special European Presentation Space Mechanisms Course Hatfield, Hertfordshire, UK - 18th and 19th September 2017 Launchspace's Special Two-Day Space Mechanisms Course  As a new initiative for 2017, on Monday and Tuesday, September 18 and 19, 2017, Launchspace is providing a special edition of its basic space vehicle mechanisms course in the same location as ESMAT 2017. NOTE: This course is not part of ESMATS 2017 and a separate attendance fee is required. COURSE DESCRIPTION: Launchspace and ESMATS 2017 have agreed to offer this special edition of the popular Space Mechanisms Course during the two days prior to the ESMATS event in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, UK. The course explores the technologies required for the successful design of moving mechanical assemblies in the space environment and offers a detailed look at many of the key components common to most mechanisms, such as ball bearings, motors and feedback devices. With this background, the high-performance materials required for operation in space are reviewed, emphasizing compatibility with the space environment and offering some background in the metallurgy, chemistry, and fabrication of those materials. Examples of some of the many types of mechanism will be included for illustration. In addition, the mechanisms relationship and interface with other vehicle systems will be explored, as a mechanism usually becomes an important part of the vehicles structural, thermal, contamination, survivability, and pointing subsystems. The course includes design and analysis examples to demonstrate principles involved in understanding how mechanisms should work, and how design margins should be evaluated during the evolution of a program. INSTRUCTOR:  Bill Purdy has 24 years of hands-on experience in the space engineering field with wide-ranging involvement in both spacecraft mechanisms and systems engineering disciplines. Mr. Purdy has been one of the leaders of the space mechanism industry's transition from explosive release mechanisms to non-explosive devices. His involvement in numerous space endeavors includes key roles on over 25 successfully flown spacecraft. In addition he worked on over 30 flown mechanisms including gimbals, release mechanisms, deployables and many other types of mechanisms. As an educator and space industry consultant to both government and industry, Mr. Purdy applies this broad experience to bring out a clear understanding of space mechanisms, their resolution and integration and their relationship to the overall system program success. Mr. Purdy was the Associate Editor of the industry-standard handbook Space Vehicle Mechanisms - Elements of Successful Design and the author of the chapter on non-explosive release mechanisms. He has published seven Aerospace Mechanisms Symposia Papers and was the 1999 winner of the Herzl Award. REGISTRATION AND FEES: Advanced registration is required. Course tuition of US$995.00 includes including lecture notes. ________________________________________________________________________________ Featured short course - available for customized presentation at your facility. Spacecraft Environments DURATION: TWO DAYS LOCATION: AT YOUR FACILITY
COURSE NO.: 2015 COURSE SUMMARY Environmental forces, whether natural or induced, produce mechanical and thermal loadings on spacecraft. Early in the development of any spacecraft, these loads must be estimated and incorporated into the design, analysis and test programs. Environmental specifications are the basis for test levels which are used to verify the design and workmanship of a space vehicle. The Spacecraft Environments Course provides participants with the necessary background and tools to produce a set of environmental specifications and test levels for any satellite development program. Emphasis is placed on how to progress from the measurement or analytical estimation of launch and on-orbit environments to a specification that can be incorporated into a space vehicle test verification program. COURSE MATERIALS: Each attendee will receive a complete set of course notes and materials. WHO SHOULD ATTEND: The course is also ideal for managers and systems engineers wishing to gain an in-depth understanding of how spacecraft environments and resulting requirements creep can impact their program risk. WHAT YOU WILL LEARN: - How to Estimate environmental loads on spacecraft.
- How to plan a test program to fully qualify a flight spacecraft for a variety of environmental load scenarios.
- Key spacecraft testing rules-of-thumb and sanity checks.
- Environmental test criteria.
- Acceptance test facility design considerations.
- The use of test data to support analytical model validation.
COURSE OUTLINE: 1. Introduction & Outline 2. Environmental Loads and Sources Discussion of all processing & flight events that have the possibility of producing environmental loads for either the launch vehicle, spacecraft, subsystems or components 3. Spacecraft Environmental Test Criteria and Standards Detailed discussion of Military, NASA, European Space Agency & Launch Vehicle Standards and documentation 4. Thermal Environments Sources of thermal loads during ground operations, launch, ascent and on-orbit as well as thermal model temperature predictions, test levels and methods 5. Pressure Venting Environments Pressure decay during ascent, an overview of pressure differential analysis & discussion of pressure profile testing 6. Acoustic Environments Sources of acoustic loads, flight data measurement & processing, derivation of test levels & durations, test methods & facilities 7. Acceleration Loads & Environments Sources of acceleration loads, flight data measurement & processing, derivation of test levels, test methods and facilities 8. Vibration Environments Sources of vibration loads, flight data measurement & processing, derivation of component & system test levels & durations, test methods & facilities 9. Shock Environments Sources of shock loads, flight data measurement & processing, derivation of test levels, assessment of shock severity & component sensitivity, test methods & facilities 10. Additional Considerations Environmental Requirements Documents, Conservatism vs. cost & schedule, organizational interactions INSTRUCTOR: James M. Haughton Jim Haughton is a structural test engineer with over 30 years of experience in structural testing of aerospace hardware. He specializes in mechanical launch environment analysis, acoustic, vibration and modal survey testing on spacecraft. His aerospace work has been primarily through the Naval Research Laboratory's Naval Center for Space Technology and NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. He has a BSME degree from Manhattan College, Bronx, N.Y. and he has been the President of, and Structural Test Engineer for, Kinetic Research Corp since 1985. _______________________________________________________________________________________________
LAUNCHSPACE is an educational and consulting organization dedicated to training and continuing education for space professionals and to supporting the space community. We offer the largest array of customized client-site courses to government agencies and industry, and a full spectrum of technical and management expertise in support of space programs. Click on www.Launchspace.com to sign up to receive our weekly articles of timely space events and advances. Also, see our extensive catalog of course offerings. Any of these can be customized for your needs, or we can create a new course for you. Through our training programs we have helped thousands of engineers and managers become more productive in their careers. Our courses and programs are unique and tailored to our clients' needs. We focus on critical skills in all areas of spaceflight, spacecraft and launch systems. Our consulting activities include technical innovation, problem solving, program management, proposal development, systems engineering and litigation expertise. We have been involved with many major space programs over the past 40 years. Our experts span the full spectrum of space challenge areas. We are available to address your needs now and in the future. Please contact us for more information about our services at info@launchspace.com or +1.202.258.6133. _______________________________________________________________________________________________
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| Launchspace Training Phone: 202 258 6133 | Email: Info@launchspace.com |
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