Long Wave Infrared Instrument for Sea Surface Temperature Measurement by CubeSats

Lead PI: Phil Putman, Sierra Lobo Inc
Start Year: 2018 | Duration: 2 year
Partners: Teledyne Judson, University of Cincinnati

Sierra Lobo, Inc. (SLI), with subcontractors Teledyne Judson and the University of Cincinnati, will develop a long-wave infrared (LWIR) cubesat-based instrument capable of measuring littoral sea surface temperature. The development effort will include conceptual design, requirements definition, preliminary design, detailed design, testing and design iterations, and production planning. The cubesat bus design, including structure, mass, power, thermal management, and control, will be developed in conjunction with the instrument design to ensure the instrument design solution is valid for operation in a cubesat form factor and to allow rapid adoption of the instrument technology in a flight vehicle. The period of performance is two years.
During the first year, SLI will perform design work on the instrument and cubesat bus. Following project kickoff, SLI will conduct a conceptual design to refine models and to predict capabilities of the instrument and cubesat bus. Conceptual design will culminate with a conceptual design review. Following conceptual design, SLI will establish requirements for the instrument and cubesat bus based on the requirements and goals of the NOPP solicitation, the results of the conceptual design, and the guidance of other stakeholders. Requirements definition will culminate with a system requirements review. The team will then undertake preliminary and detailed design of the instrument and cubesat bus, refining the design of the cubesat bus and instrument, and develop detailed design documents necessary for production of the instrument. Preliminary design will culminate with a Preliminary Design Review, and detailed design will culminate with a Critical Design Review.
During the second year, SLI will perform breadboard-level testing on key components of the instrument. SLI will build and test selected cubesat bus components or subsystems or lower-fidelity prototypes thereof, as needed, to verify predicted performance and minimize programmatic risk. Following testing, SLI will plan for production of a flight-ready instrument and cubesat bus. Test data will be used to perform a final instrument and cubesat bus design update and to develop schedule and budget estimates for developing, building, and operating a flight LWIR instrument for sea surface temperature measurement by cubesats, culminating in a Flight Selection Review.