[amsat-bb] Re: ARISSat-1 - Batteries

[Rocky Jones]

This seems to have caught the AMSAT folks by surprise...I would be curious about any comments from them.

Having said that...someone somewhere should at least be doing a "thought experiment" about what would have to happen to leave the payload in the station as a permanent device...not as a free flyer.

The Russians have dealt with any real objections that could be raised about the operation of the payload on the station...most of the ones that would be studied to death would come from NASA, but clearly the Russians dont care (as they frequently dont) so they are fine with it operating.

Based on the op time already if the battery is not recharged, the bat does not have much life left in it...and if it is not recharged after the use on the 12th it will likely have no life...that will limit enormously the payload use of the free flyer.

I can think of three legitimate issues with the payload staying on the station (and these are just off the top of my head).

Thermal...the thing was designed as a free flyerwith temp extremes far greater then on the station so...
Power...some other information indicates that a cable would have to go up to the station probably need some power interface stuff...
Storage...the payload is not in a package good for internal use.


The entire thing is kind of interesting...


Robert G. Oler WB5MZO Life member AMSATARRL

From: clintbradford at mac.com
Date: Mon, 14 Feb 2011 12:15:44 -0800
To: amsat-bb at amsat.org
Subject: [amsat-bb]  ARISSat-1 - Batteries

The Russians didn't think ARISSat-1's batteries would last from Feb 16 to April 12 - April 12 being the anniversary of Gagarin's historic 1961 flight.
 
Kedr to Be Switched on in the ISS on April 12

15.02.2011

"Russian cosmonauts Dmitry Kondratiev and Oleg Skripochka won�t launch small spacecraft Kedr during their spacewalk scheduled for Feb.16, Roscosmos Stats Secretary, Deputy Head Vitaly Davydov told news media. 
According to him, the idea is to switch on Kedr inside the ISS on April 12, in order to commemorate the jubilee of Yury Gagarin�s mission. Weak batteries of the RF-amateur satellite won�t let it fly and transmit signals until this date, if the satellite is launched on Feb. 16. 

"Small spacecraft Kedr developed under the RadioSkaf experiment bears the name adopted by Yu.A. Gagarin call sign in his historical flight, namely Kedr. The satellite�s signal will be transmitted at radio amateur frequency of 145.95 MHz. Kedr has radio amateur call sign RS1S.

"RadioSkaf is implemented in the framework of UNESCO�s student space education program."
 
Roscosmos PAO
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