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www.southgatearc.org
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ION Launch DebriefingA launch attempt with the Illinois Observing Nanosatellite (ION) was made on July 26, 2006. Unfortunately, ION and the 17 other satellites on the launch did not make it into orbit due to a launch failure in the second minute. ION was to be deployed in the fifteenth minute. The launch provider is carefully evaluating the root cause of the failure, and we will pass on the official results to our own constituents when they are announced. Although the ION project has come to an unfortunate end, it is important to remember all that we have learned and accomplished. We can continue to take pride in our work as ION has already provided a significant example of the capabilities of these tiny satellites. In particular, we continue to hope that ION's science payload will help expand the perceptions of the value these satellites can provide even beyond education. We also continue hope that ION's example will help serve as a stepping stone towards space sensor webs, a critical enabling technology. ION's successor has been officially named "ION-Hydro," inheriting the name of its predecessor as a reminder of the importance of continually testing these complex systems. ION-Hydro has been in development for one year and consists of two photometers pointed upwards to measure hydrogen airglow and background contamination. A duplicate should also be readily adaptable to ION's primary mission consisting of an oxygen airglow measurement. In conclusion, we would like to thank everyone that has supported the team including our sponsors, the University of Illinois, the College of Engineering, the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, the Department of Aerospace Engineering, and Alameda Corporation. During these past 5 years, over 125 students across 7 engineering disciplines worked together to bring a monumental student project to within minutes of its final destination beginning with no organizational experience. Although circumstances beyond our control have interfered with the final result, we, along with student satellite developers from all the other universities, have every reason to continue to take pride in our work. Hopefully everyone will rebuild better than before.
Purvesh Thakker and Mike Dabrowski See also
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