BLUEsat
Encyclopedia
The Basic Low Earth Orbit
UNSW Experimental Satellite
(BLUEsat) project is an engineering project being undertaken by students at the University of New South Wales
. It aims to raise awareness of space
and give students the opportunity to investigate, design, build and launch a satellite. The project operates without pecuniary interest and is funded by several schools of the Faculty of Engineering. Financial and in-kind sponsorship from external organizations augment the project's limited budget.
The project has several parallels with amateur radio
from which it is able to seek and share expertise with. At launch, BLUEsat will join the constellation of amateur satellites
orbiting earth, freely available for use by the amateur community.
satellite laid out in an accessible manner.
Low Earth orbit
A low Earth orbit is generally defined as an orbit within the locus extending from the Earth’s surface up to an altitude of 2,000 km...
UNSW Experimental Satellite
Satellite
In the context of spaceflight, a satellite is an object which has been placed into orbit by human endeavour. Such objects are sometimes called artificial satellites to distinguish them from natural satellites such as the Moon....
(BLUEsat) project is an engineering project being undertaken by students at the University of New South Wales
University of New South Wales
The University of New South Wales , is a research-focused university based in Kensington, a suburb in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
. It aims to raise awareness of space
Outer space
Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....
and give students the opportunity to investigate, design, build and launch a satellite. The project operates without pecuniary interest and is funded by several schools of the Faculty of Engineering. Financial and in-kind sponsorship from external organizations augment the project's limited budget.
The project has several parallels with amateur radio
Amateur radio
Amateur radio is the use of designated radio frequency spectrum for purposes of private recreation, non-commercial exchange of messages, wireless experimentation, self-training, and emergency communication...
from which it is able to seek and share expertise with. At launch, BLUEsat will join the constellation of amateur satellites
OSCAR
OSCAR is an acronym for Orbiting Satellite Carrying Amateur Radio. OSCAR series satellites use amateur radio frequencies to facilitate communication between amateur radio stations. These satellites can be used for free by licensed amateur radio operators for voice and data communications...
orbiting earth, freely available for use by the amateur community.
Current Progress
The team is working on the flatsat, an integration of all the electronic components of thesatellite laid out in an accessible manner.
Technical specifications
- Low Earth Orbit
- 250mm cube
- 2 VHF (145 MHz) receivers
- 2 UHF (432 MHz) transmitters
- 6 panels of 14 solar cells
- 2 battery packs
- 133 MHz Flight Computer
- Global Positioning System