Train Undergraduate and Graduate Students in the Spacecraft Design Lifecycle Through the Bandit-D Mission: Collaborative Situational Awareness Using a Team of Four Deployable Spacecraft

Abstract

Abstract : Undergraduate and graduate students at Washington University in St. Louis and Saint Louis University delivered a functional prototype of the Close-Orbiting Propellant Plume and Elemental Recognition (COPPER) spacecraft to the 2011 Flight Competition Review of the University Nanosat-6 Program. In addition to the design reviews and events sponsored by the Program, the major accomplishments of this grant activity include: 1) Transitioning the program from Washington University to Saint Louis University (where the PI completed the work as a subcontract), 2) Performing three major design revisions based on industry feedback and test results, 3) Having a re-scoped COPPER spacecraft be selected for launch on NASA's ELANA-IV flight in Spring 2012, 4) Building a core competency in space systems at Saint Louis University sufficient to be selected for the University Nanosat-7 Program, 5) Loaning Akoya (original Nanosat-6 mission) to AFRL for SSA testing.