Faculty Advisor
Blandino, John J.
Abstract
This work evaluated the power, propulsion, and telecommunications subsystems for CubeSats to support two missions in low earth orbit; a Rendezvous (formation flying) mission and a mission to explore extreme low earth orbit. After selecting a baseline set of hardware for each spacecraft, trade studies were performed to evaluate options. Chemical and electric propulsion options for both primary and attitude control were considered. Thrusters for attitude control were compared with reaction wheels and performance compared for both required maneuvers and disturbance torque compensation. Power subsystem trades considered different solar arrays and battery options. Telecommunication subsystem trades compared data link budgets for different orbit inclinations and receiving station networks.
Publisher
Worcester Polytechnic Institute
Date Accepted
March 2018
Major
Aerospace Engineering
Project Type
Major Qualifying Project
Copyright Statement
All authors have granted to WPI a nonexclusive royalty-free license to distribute copies of the work, subject to other agreements. Copyright is held by the author or authors, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise noted.
Accessibility
Unrestricted
Advisor Department
Mechanical Engineering