Match filtering approach for signal acquisition in radio-pulsar navigation

Pulsars with their periodic pulses and known positions are ideal beacons for navigation. The challenge, however, is the detection of the very weak pulsar signals that are submerged in noise. Radio based approaches allow the use of advanced techniques and methods for the detection and acquisition of such weak signals. In this paper, an effective...

On the reliability of spacecraft swarms

Satellite swarms, consisting of a large number of identical, miniaturized and simple satellites, are claimed to provide an implementation for specific space missions which require high reliability. However, a consistent model of how reliability and availability on mission level is linked to cost- and time-effective design of the individual swarm...

An extensive and autonomous deep space navigation system using radio pulsars

Interstellar navigation poses significant challenges in all aspects of a spacecraft. One of them is reliable, low-cost, real-time navigation, especially when there is a considerable distance between Earth and the spacecraft in question. In this paper, a complete system for navigation using pulsar radio emissions is described and analysed. The...

Systematic identification of applications for a cluster of femto-satellites

Embracing reduced requirements and leveraging commercial technology has led to a fast growing small satellite industry. Although most interest in small satellites has hovered around the micro satellites through to the picosatellites, academic interest now extends up to the sub 100 g range of satellites as well. Femto-satellites with a mass range...

A New Approach for Enhanced Communication to LEO Satellites

Operations of satellites in Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) have been based on exploiting the maximum time of visibility of satellites over their ground stations. In this paper, it is shown that a key parameter for communication between a satellite and a ground station is not the time of visibility but the amount of telemetry data which can be transmitted...

A novel astronomical application for formation flying small satellites

OLFAR, Orbiting Low Frequency Antennas for Radio Astronomy, will be a space mission to observe the universe frequencies below 30 MHz, as it was never done before with an orbiting telescope. Because of the ionospheric scintillations below 30 MHz and the opaqueness of the ionosphere below 15 MHz, a space mission is the only opportunity for this as...

Advancing nano-satellite platforms: The Delfi Program

The Delfi Program aims to launch a nano-satellite every 2.5 years with the objectives to give the best education for space engineering, to test and qualify novel space technology and to enhance the nanosatellite platform to open doors for new applications. With Delfi-C3 in orbit, Delfi-n3Xt in development for a launch in 2010 and preliminary...

Increasing system performance and flexibility: Distributed computing and routing of data within the fast formation flying mission

In 2007, the Tsinghua University, China, and the Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands, have agreed to jointly define, develop and operate the Formation for Atmospheric Science and Technology demonstration (FAST) mission. FAST will allow for a synoptic evaluation of global aerosol data and altitude profiles of the cryosphere with two...