Constellations of Small Satellites
On January 3, the 99th Indian Science Congress, at the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) University, heard how we can learn from migratory birds when building satellite constellations.
Radio Amateurs pioneered small satellite technology, now scientists are thinking about using many small 1kg satellites in constellations so that they can function as a large unit.
The Times of India reports on the presentation given by ISRO Satellite Centre director TK Alex:
"The formation flying of migratory birds and swarm flying of bees are excellent lessons we can learn from nature to launch constellations of small satellites that can move and work as a single unit to provide a variety of services to humankind," said ISRO Satellite Centre director TK Alex at the Indian Science Congress.
"Here, we can learn from the birds and the bees. We have to study how bees fly in a swarm without bumping into each other. Also, how birds fly in a formation with a bird in the lead. While the camera aperture of a small satellite may not be as good as that of a big one, a constellation of satellites, if aligned perfectly, can function as a single unit, like a synthetic aperture radar, while being separate entities. The applications could be on earth monitoring and related studies," TK Alex said.
While we are yet to thoroughly understand the science behind the alignment of birds and bees in flight, a big challenge in replicating it for a satellite constellation lies in a basic difference — while birds and bees fly in a near linear path, satellites move in space in an elliptical orbit outside the atmosphere. "We need precision micro-thrusters to keep the distance between satellites and also make sure that they don't stray away from each other. It's tough, but doable," he said.
Read the full Times of India story at
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-01-07/india/
28355171_1_migratory-birds-small-satellites-satellite-constellation
99th Indian Science Congress, Bhubaneswar
Focal theme- Science And Technology for Inclusive Innovation- Role of Women
http://www.isc2012.com/
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