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The nanosatellite will operate in a circular sun-synchronous orbit with an altitude of 558.4 km. During the SSC flight tests, SamSat-ION scientific equipment will collect data necessary for scientists to study the ionosphere - the upper layer of the Earth’s atmosphere, which, depending on the Sun’s activity, affects the propagation of radio waves and the performance of equipment. This is particularly true for polar and circumpolar regions of the Arctic and Antarctic. According to a number of studies, monitoring the current state of the ionosphere can even help predict earthquakes in seismically unstable regions of the planet. Besides, during the SSC mission, a new domestic satellite platform with a passive-active orientation and stabilization system will be tested.
“SamSat-ION nanosatellite was developed and manufactured at Samara University by young scientists and postgraduate students of the Inter-University Department of Space Research and R&D laboratory ‘Perspective fundamental and applied space research on the basis of nanosatellites.’ Students of master’s programs and senior students of bachelor’s programs were actively involved in the work. The satellite is designed to study the Earth’s ionosphere and magnetosphere. All of its onboard systems and scientific equipment are developed within the country; this is actually the first Russian nanosatellite fitted with domestic equipment for such research. In the future, scientific data from this satellite may help solve problems of further development of the Arctic and Antarctic, where disturbances of the ionosphere from solar activity are usually the most significant and strongly affect satellite navigation and communication,” said the head of the Inter-University Department of Space Research at Samara University Professor Igor Belokonov.
Research equipment
The equipment installed on board SamSat-ION has received positive expert feedback from the Fedorov Institute of Applied Geophysics and Federal Service of Russia for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring (Roshydromet). The apparatus includes three scientific instruments, including an original plasma parameter sensor.
Scientists of the Institute of Applied Physics of the Russian Academy of Sciences took part in the creation of the sensor. The instrument allows measuring plasma characteristics along the orbit of satellite motion.
The spacecraft also carries a telescopic magnetometer on a folding boom of original design; it will measure the state of the Earth’s magnetic field. The boom is necessary to move the instrument farther away from the satellite body and reduce electromagnetic interference and noise. For reliable opening of the boom structure, Samara scientists applied an original technical solution of the locking device, which they subsequently patented.
The third device is a navigation receiver developed at the university for scientific purposes; it operates on two frequencies (L1 and L2) of the Russian GLONASS system. The domestic GLONASS satellite constellation provides much better coverage of polar and circumpolar regions in contrast to the foreign GPS system.
“Working on these frequencies, we will be able to process the information coming from navigation satellites in a special way, and discern the so-called delays in radio signal propagation. These delays indicate a certain state of the ionosphere along the signal path from the navigation satellite to our receiver. That is, we will be able to monitor the state of the ionosphere not only in the orbit of the satellite flight, with the help of the plasma parameter sensor; we will also monitor the state of the upper ionosphere, as if “scanning” it with radio signals, or, in scientific terms, we will conduct tomography of the upper ionosphere. This is very important from a scientific and applied point of view, as in case of success, we will obtain much more information about the state of ionosphere,” said Igor Belokonov.
The tomography data will be processed using algorithms developed as part of a joint grant provided by the Russian Foundation for Basic Research and the Belarusian Foundation for Fundamental Research titled “Theoretical Foundations of Studying Wave Processes and Phenomena in the Ionosphere Using Signals of Satellite Radio Navigation Systems”. It is a joint scientific project between Russia and Belarus initiated by Samara University and completed in 2022.
Comprehensive studies of plasma characteristics and delays in the propagation of radio signals will help understand the mechanisms of processes occurring in the ionosphere. This solution will be crucial for predicting possible failures in operation of radio communication systems, correcting errors and improving the accuracy of positioning systems on Earth. Besides, the understanding of physical processes occurring in the ionosphere opens up opportunities for new promising technologies of information transmission.
Satellite bus
Development, manufacturing, assembly and testing of the Samara nanosatellite took about two years. This period of time was necessary for the team to build its own nanosatellite platform, thus achieving full technological independence.
All onboard systems were developed practically from scratch, i.e. we created our own solutions rather than using ready-made ones.
Ground tests included simulation of on-orbit conditions in a thermovacuum chamber and using a vibrodynamic bench for simulation of conditions of the powered flight phase of launch into orbit by a launch vehicle. The power supply system was tested with a solar simulator, and the motion control system was tested on a rig using an air suspension, which put the satellite in conditions close to weightlessness. In addition, as a result of tests on a unique test bench of our own design, the tensor and position of the centre of mass of the nanosatellite were determined experimentally for the first time, which will help more effectively control its angular motion.
For especially heavy-duty tests, the spacecraft’s “stunt double” was created to check whether, for example, the design can withstand a certain load, and then, in the case of a positive outcome of the test on the “double,” the apparatus launched into space on June 27 underwent the complex tests.
“Along with the significance of this satellite for science, for scientific experiments, its flight is also extremely important from the point of view of conducting flight tests of the new domestic satellite bus we have developed within the framework of this project. When creating the nanosatellite, we applied a new design approach and selected such design parameters of the spacecraft (moments of inertia, position of the centre of mass) to ensure that in flight the desired orientation of the satellite position in space is achieved, coinciding with the position of equilibrium, which meets the objectives of the mission. We did it in order to ensure that it does not ‘tumble’ in orbit, rotating around its axis after leaving the transport and launch container, but maintains the desired orientation,” emphasized Igor Belokonov.
According to him, the task of providing the required orientation and stabilization in space proved to be very challenging. Scientists came up with a technical solution in which the centre of mass was shifted relative to the longitudinal axis of the satellite so that the aerodynamic drag (which is present in low orbits) affects the satellite in the right way, orienting the sensitive element of the plasma parameter sensor along the velocity vector. This was achieved through the use of the previously mentioned test bench, which allows to determine the position of the satellite’s centre of mass with an error of up to 0.5 mm.
The SamSat-ION nanosatellite is expected to have an active lifetime of at least one year in orbit.
For reference:
* The Samara University is a participant of the Science and Universities National Project.
** Ionosphere is the upper layer of the Earth’s atmosphere saturated with charged particles, whose concentration depends on the solar activity and affects the propagation of radio waves, having a noticeable impact on performance of various technical systems. Knowledge of the state of ionosphere plays a central role in satellite navigation and communication.
*** UniverSat is a Russian program for launching small spacecraft developed at Russian universities in the interests of federal ministries and departments. The program is implemented by the State Corporation Roscosmos. The launch of small research spacecraft using Russian launch vehicles is implemented as part of Russia’s 2016–2025 Federal Space Program. UniverSat is the main Russian program for launching CubeSat-format SSC of Russian universities, which solve tasks in the interests of state customers of Roscosmos State Corporation.
Photo: Stepan Shafran
