The ALEXIS small satellite project: better, faster, cheaper faces reality

Conference · Sun Aug 01 00:00:00 EDT 1993 · IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers); (United States)

OSTI ID:5835045

Priedhorsky, W C; Bloch, J J; Wallin, S P; Armstrong, W T ^[1]; Siegmund, O H.W. ^[2]; Griffee, J ^[3]; Fleeter, R

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1. Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
2. Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Space Sciences Lab.
3. Sandia National Lab., CA (United States)

ALEXIS is one of the most sophisticated miniature satellites developed to date, and the first satellite project led by Los Alamos National Laboratory. It carries both soft X-ray astrophysics and ionospheric physics experiments. As such, it is an example for experimenters who desire better, faster, and cheaper access to space. The satellite was launch-ready 3 1/2 years after concept. The soft X-ray experiment, ALEXIS, is a novel set of wide-angle, normal incidence telescopes which scan half the sky every satellite rotation. BLACKBEARD is a broad-band receiver and digitizer designed to study ionospheric propagation in the 25--175 MHz band. The spin-stabilized spacecraft is compact and efficient; for example, it provides 50 Watts to the payload while consuming 10 Watts itself. ALEXIS will fly on a Pegasus air-launched booster. The authors discuss the ALEXIS integration history and lessons learned therein.

• OSTI ID: 5835045
• Report Number(s): CONF-921005-; CODEN: IETNAE
• Journal Information: IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers); (United States), Vol. 40:4 part 1; Conference: Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) nuclear science symposium and medical imaging conference, Orlando, FL (United States), 25-31 Oct 1992; ISSN 0018-9499
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
IONOSPHERE
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
SATELLITES
ASTROPHYSICS
DIGITIZERS
LANL
SIZE
SOFT X RADIATION
TELESCOPES
EARTH ATMOSPHERE
ELECTROMAGNETIC RADIATION
ELECTRONIC CIRCUITS
IONIZING RADIATIONS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
PLANETARY IONOSPHERES
PULSE CIRCUITS
RADIATIONS
SIGNAL CONDITIONERS
US DOE
US ORGANIZATIONS
X RADIATION
661320* - Auroral
Ionospheric
& Magnetospheric Phenomena- (1992-)