Nebula - n-Prize competition entrant No. 1

You are here: Home > Production

Production
Modular Element
Design

Home	>	About
	>	Mission Profile
	>	Simulations
	>	Design
	>	Production Groundstation Satellite A Satellite B Satellite C Satellite JFF Modularisation
	>	Testing
	>	Crew
	>	Launch Data
	>	Contact

Links

Modular Elements

The rocket is designed around a basic, lightweight superstructure made from tubular aluminium with aluminium bulkheads along its length.

Three of the bulkheads (Sensor, Control and Recovery bulkheads) contain the modular functional elements, three of which are pictured below:

Click the image for a larger view

Mission Patch

Click the image for a larger view

Checking for correct operation of the release solenoid at low temperature. The trouble is my freezer only goes down to -25°C ...

The modules are each designed to have significantly more mechanical strength than the superstructure to which thet are bolted. This means that in the event of a moderate (whatever that is) crash each module has its own energy absorbing crumple zone surrounding it. Hopefully this means that in the event of something unpleasant happening the individual modules, which are expensive, are protected by the superstructure, which is cheap.

The modules featured above are:

A - One of the drogue chute release solenoids. It is also used on the Nebula 'Horizon' high-altuitude balloon testing platform as the balloon cutaway device.

B - The video sensing package. It contains two (forward and reverse looking) high-resolution video cameras, and one high-resolution ventral stills camera. Video from the cameras is MPEG2 encoded before being relayed to the grounstation over a 2.4GHz link. The stills are JPEG encoded before being relayed as part of the normal telemetry (by uplink request).

C - One of the recovery parachute steering servos. Two servos plus the IN platform, GPS module, a flux-gate magnetometer and some software are employed in steering a specially designed ram-air parachute so that the 'Ambition' craft can be recovered to one of a set of pre-defined locations with a high degree of accuracy. Or into the sea.