About This Project

Our team is testing the TinyDuino, which is a new, small, stackable microcontroller with low power consumption. It can be used to collect data or control systems as a tiny computer, and could be ideal for small satellites. We are testing it through logging data from a magnetometer, temperature sensor, and accelerometer to a micro SD card. This microcontroller could reduce the cost of launching small satellites by allowing them to be smaller. It could also allow standard sized craft to do more.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

In recent years space travel has become increasingly affordable through endeavors by SpaceX and other groups. One such innovation is the small satellite, which allows greater access than ever before to something that was once the sole realm of government agencies with millions of dollars in funding. Today small satellites are allowing students to gain valuable experience by launching satellites to collect data, test hardware for larger craft, and carry out various experiments. It costs around $20,000 to launch a 5cm cubic PocketQube. (http://www.pocketqubeshop.com/cost/) This makes such a satellite potentially ideal for many researchers and universities/schools. However, the small volume and surface area necessitate very small electronics that consume little power.

What is the significance of this project?

The TinyDuino is a relatively new microcontroller that is only two centimeters square, is stackable, and consumes little power. It also follows the popular Arduino format. This microcontroller would be ideal for small satellites and other space projects, where space and power come at a premium. Microcontrollers are tiny computers that can control sensors, radios, cameras, etc., and act as the brains of many projects. To our knowledge, this would be the first flight of this microcontoller in outer space. This suborbital spaceflight would give us a brief test in space to evaluate its performance for future, more involved missions while spending only a fraction of the cost for an orbital launch. Future projects could do things like measure cosmic radiation, observe Earth, relay signals, etc.

What are the goals of the project?

We plan to test the TinyDuino through logging data from a magnetometer, temperature sensor, and accelerometer to a micro SD card. A magnetometer measures the Earth's magnetic field/magnetism, and an accelerometer measures the forces of acceleration. These three sensors can tell us what sort of conditions the microcontroller endured/survived, and would verify its proper function during the spaceflight. We have already purchased, programmed, and assembled the electronics. One of our members is preparing to 3D print the protective enclosure for the payload. This leaves launch expenses as our last great hurdle. This makes for a relatively simple, but valuable test, and will give us useful experience for our careers after high school and college.