Project:HackSat One
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Flux has pledged for a Kicksat satellite dev kit. It's due in May 2012.
First Steps
- Get some MSP430 experience. Several people in the space have mentioned having boards.
- We have at least 3 MSP430 devkits in the space, The toolchain is a bit icky tho, but I think we have enough incentive to fix that now.
- Run some MSP430 workshops
- Get MSP430 book (already bought - should be in the space shortly)
The Hardware
We don't get to design the hardware on this mission, just program it.
- controller: TI CC430, MSP430 core with a radio: http://www.ti.com/product/cc430f6137
- sensors: temperature + one other TBC (KickSat are taking suggestions)
- radio: we can transmit what and when we like (subject to solar power) but data rate is only a few bits per second
The Orbit
"While we don't know the orbit, we're aiming for a circular low altitude LEO - around 300 km. altitude. That would mean a roughly 90 minute orbit with several daylight passes per day (usually 3 or 4 over any given location). Each pass would be somewhere around 5 minutes long."
Payload
See the payload page for ideas.
Ground Station
See Project:Hoxton Space Centre.
Resources
- MSP430 on TI site.
- MSP430 dev kit (Farnell)
- MSP430 getting started workshop