Posts by VM: Mira Universe@Home

1) Message boards : Number crunching : Gpu App? (Message 1113) Posted 25 Mar 2016 by VM: Mira Post: Any broad idea on how much credits the GPU tasks could give ?
2) Message boards : Cafe : Kickstarter - Projet CubeSat for Disclosure (Message 1066) Posted 10 Feb 2016 by VM: Mira Post: I have some concerns regarding this. Your team should address them if you don't want to disappoint yourselves and your donors. A few remarks on the payload: - Unless you use a high-class Geiger counter, you will not be able to define the type of radiation captured. Even if you do, locating the source would be extremely difficult, as it could be anything from a distant pulsar to a black hole to the Sun itself. Your detector will also need to cover a vast range of energy levels to find any previously unregistered anomalies, and I'm afraid such a comprehensive observatory cannot yet be fitted into a CubeSat. The Fermi Gamma-ray Telescope, which only covers gamma ray emissions, weighs more than 4 tons. A simple commercially available Geiger tube cannot differentiate between alpha, beta and gamma, nor cosmic radiation. It will merely measure the surrounding ionization level. - Similar concerns for the infrared spectrum. You'll need to cover anything from near to far infrared. Those types of sensors can get quite expensive if quality and performance is what you're looking for (and given the task, quality and performance are paramount). - Do you have a methodology in place to gather, sort and analyse data or distinguish an anomaly from a sensor glitch, airplanes, interference from other satellites, space junk or natural deep space emissions ? If you lack this, you'll get a lot of false positives. Also take into account that your project will not be the first one to study possible alien presence. SETI has been scanning deep space radio emissions for years, and so far they haven't come up with anything. Satellites with radars are also currently in orbit and the only things they detect up there are either meteors, space junk or other satellites. Your coverage will also be patchy (it's only one satellite that observes a portion of the planet) so you'll have to consider your sensing payload very carefully. If you want to detect a UFO, you'll certainly need a payload capable of tracking the speed and flight path of an object, then you should be able to compare the data you have with databases of registered objects in flight (civilian or military planes, helicopters and so forth). In general, your task is really tough and might be outside the capacity of a CubeSat. - After taking all these things into consideration and clarify the physical parameters of what you look for, you'll need to pick up a useful orbit. I also have some questions pertaining to the bus: 1) There doesn't seem to be any mention of an attitude control system of any sort. How will you control the satellite's orientation ? 2) Ham radio can be much easier to use than non-amateur bands. The international amateur radio operator community is very active, especially when it comes to satellite signals. If I recall correctly, a few years ago they even helped locate a lost CubeSat by listening for its transmissions. I believe it was one of the BeeSats. Using non-amateur frequencies can be burdensome as you have to deal with the ITU. So, do you have an actual rationale to use a non-amateur frequency ? 3) How do you plan to locate the satellite once it is up there ? 4) What orbit will you use ? This has to be defined by the necessities of the payload, but having it clear is crucial. You should also make sure that your SLV can actually put the object in the designated type of orbit. 5) Will you use just one bus, or you will have an additional one for the testing procedures ? Have you considered a second bus when drafting your financial plan ? You'll need to be a lot more precise if you are to succeed with your campaign (and your mission anyway). BR, NBU Space Lab