Project X

From CSTART Wiki

Project X is CSTART's unmanned Earth satellite project. The core idea behind Project X is to design a simple "universal satellite frame", which provides essential, mission-independent services such as propulsion (attitude control and station keeping), power generation and radio communication to Earth, and which is able to support the attachment of multiple, mission-specific instrument modules (containing, for instance, cameras, or sensors), via a standardised physical attachment mechanism. Each of these instrument modules will be able to send data to the universal frame's onboard computer via a standardised connection interface (e.g. 9 pin serial, Ethernet, USB) and have that data sent back to Earth. With this arrangement, many different kinds of satellite (Earth observation, communications relay, scientific data collection, etc.) may be constructed and launched using a common set of basic hardware - hardware which will eventually become extremely well tested. The use of standardised attachment mechanisms and data interfaces means that third parties (small government space programs, universities, ham radio clubs, etc.) can independently design and construct instrument modules which CSTART will then be able to fly.

The primary design constraint on the Project X universal frame (beyond the CSTART design philosophy, which applies to all of our projects) is that the technology used to facilitate such things as propulsion, power storage and radio communication be chosen so as to maximise the extent to which the launch of Project X satellites provides a testing ground for technology which is planned to be used in the CLLARE project.