Command and Data System Testing for LizzieSat Completed
Command and data system testing required for mission success of its LizzieSat constellation has been completed by Sidus Space. With this testing complete, LizzieSat is one step closer to its manifested 2023 launch from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.
“The successful test of Sidus Space integrated space to ground communications architecture meets critical design requirements." Carol Craig, Sidus Space CEO.
Carol Craig, Sidus Space CEO.
Sidus Space partnered with Kongsberg Satellite (KSAT), a Norwegian-based company that provides ground station communication links to satellite constellations, to complete the S-Band Radio Frequency (RF) Compatibility Test (RFCT) for the Company’s hybrid 3D-printed satellites. The completion of these tests validates the proper functioning of the communications and data transfer paths between a LizzieSat satellite in space and the KSAT ground stations.
“The successful test of Sidus Space integrated space to ground communications architecture meets critical design requirements. LizzieSat satellite communications route seamlessly into our Mission Control Center (MCC) and allow Sidus flight controllers to maintain each satellite at peak efficiency throughout its 5-year orbital lifetime,” said Carol Craig, Sidus Space CEO.
Command and Data System Testing Simulated Actual Flight Conditions
The command and data system testing was performed at Sidus’ Satellite production facility in Cape Canaveral, Florida, using flight-like interfaces between the satellite flight computer, S-band radio, and a KSAT Earth Station “Suitcase” which exactly replicates the functions of KSAT Earth Stations.
In support of NASA’s Autonomous Satellite Technology for Resilient Applications (ASTRA) project, NASA’s Autonomous Systems Lab (ASL) team joined with Sidus Space to integrate and demonstrate for the first time, Mars Campaign Development (MCD) Division (formerly Advanced Exploration Systems) derived autonomous operations in a spaceflight environment. The demonstration expects to provide the necessary flight heritage for an autonomous system development platform that could be used on future deep space missions. ASTRA plans to infuse multiple new technologies on a Sidus-built LizzieSat-1 satellite which is scheduled to be deployed from the International Space Station (ISS) using the SSIKLOPS deployer.
LizzieSat-1 intends to validate the MCD-developed autonomy software (NPAS-NASA Platform for Autonomous Systems) through on-orbit testing.
(Source: Sidus Space news release. Images from file)