Javier Pérez Álvarez | Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (original) (raw)

Papers by Javier Pérez Álvarez

Key Science Questions to be Addressed • What are the physical processes shaping planetary atmosph... more Key Science Questions to be Addressed • What are the physical processes shaping planetary atmospheres? • What are exoplanets made of? • How do planets and planetary systems form and evolve? Science Objectives (Chapter 2) Ariel Definition Study Report page 3 Foreword The concept of a mission devoted to atmospheric characterization of exoplanets through transit spectroscopy was first considered in Europe in 2007, shortly after the DARWIN proposal submitted to ESA for the first Cosmic Vision call for L-class missions was rejected because of the need for further scientific and technical developments. Following the decision, both ESA (EP-RAT panel report, October 2010) and the Exoplanetary Community (Blue Dot Team-Barcelona conference, September 2009) started a discussion to define a roadmap for exoplanetary research. Both groups concluded that an intermediate step was needed, both scientifically and technically, before the characterisation of Earth-like planets could be tackled, and recommended a transit spectroscopy mission as a first step to atmospheric characterisation. A short study was undertaken at ESTEC in the context of the ExoPlanet Roadmap Advisory Team mandate under the name ESM (Exoplanet Spectroscopy Mission). Following this study the Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory (EChO) was proposed and accepted for assessment phase study in the context of the ESA Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 programme M3 medium class mission opportunity. Although eventually not selected, the EChO study 1 allowed further development of the technical building blocks and the science case for an eventual transit spectroscopy mission. In response to the call for the next medium class opportunity, Cosmic Vision M4, a proposal was submitted in January 2015: the Atmospheric Remote-sensing InfraRed Large-survey (ARIEL). The mission was one of the three selected in June 2015 for study in a Phase 0/A, a competitive assessment phase 2. ARIEL was eventually selected as M4 in March 2018, and went into Phase B1, the definition study phase. The name of the mission has been changed to Ariel after selection. During Phase B1, the science case was studied in depth and consolidated under auspices of the Science Advisory Team, the bulk of the work being performed in a large number of science working groups in the Ariel Mission Consortium (AMC). The ESA Study Team and AMC reviewed the mission requirements, the technical design and analysis of the complete payload module (including telescope, instruments, guidance system and supporting infrastructure). The AMC developed an end-to-end performance simulator of the complete system. Two industrial contractors (Airbus Defence and Space, France and ThalesAlenia Space, France) reviewed the mission requirements, the technical design and analysis of the s/c and performed a programmatic analysis of the mission. Dedicated iterations were done in conjunction with both industrial and payload studies to harmonise the interfaces between the s/c and the payload, and to consolidate the payload accommodation. Recently the ESA Mission Adoption Review has successfully been concluded. This definition study report presents a summary of the very large body of work that has been undertaken on the Ariel mission over the 30-month period of the Ariel definition phase. As such, it represents the contributions of a large number of parties (ESA, industry, institutes and universities from 17 ESA member states, NASA CASE team), encompassing a very large number of people.

Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2022: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave

European Space Agency, Nov 30, 2020

Key Science Questions to be Addressed • What are the physical processes shaping planetary atmosph... more Key Science Questions to be Addressed • What are the physical processes shaping planetary atmospheres? • What are exoplanets made of? • How do planets and planetary systems form and evolve? Science Objectives (Chapter 2) Ariel Definition Study Report page 3 Foreword The concept of a mission devoted to atmospheric characterization of exoplanets through transit spectroscopy was first considered in Europe in 2007, shortly after the DARWIN proposal submitted to ESA for the first Cosmic Vision call for L-class missions was rejected because of the need for further scientific and technical developments. Following the decision, both ESA (EP-RAT panel report, October 2010) and the Exoplanetary Community (Blue Dot Team-Barcelona conference, September 2009) started a discussion to define a roadmap for exoplanetary research. Both groups concluded that an intermediate step was needed, both scientifically and technically, before the characterisation of Earth-like planets could be tackled, and recommended a transit spectroscopy mission as a first step to atmospheric characterisation. A short study was undertaken at ESTEC in the context of the ExoPlanet Roadmap Advisory Team mandate under the name ESM (Exoplanet Spectroscopy Mission). Following this study the Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory (EChO) was proposed and accepted for assessment phase study in the context of the ESA Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 programme M3 medium class mission opportunity. Although eventually not selected, the EChO study 1 allowed further development of the technical building blocks and the science case for an eventual transit spectroscopy mission. In response to the call for the next medium class opportunity, Cosmic Vision M4, a proposal was submitted in January 2015: the Atmospheric Remote-sensing InfraRed Large-survey (ARIEL). The mission was one of the three selected in June 2015 for study in a Phase 0/A, a competitive assessment phase 2. ARIEL was eventually selected as M4 in March 2018, and went into Phase B1, the definition study phase. The name of the mission has been changed to Ariel after selection. During Phase B1, the science case was studied in depth and consolidated under auspices of the Science Advisory Team, the bulk of the work being performed in a large number of science working groups in the Ariel Mission Consortium (AMC). The ESA Study Team and AMC reviewed the mission requirements, the technical design and analysis of the complete payload module (including telescope, instruments, guidance system and supporting infrastructure). The AMC developed an end-to-end performance simulator of the complete system. Two industrial contractors (Airbus Defence and Space, France and ThalesAlenia Space, France) reviewed the mission requirements, the technical design and analysis of the s/c and performed a programmatic analysis of the mission. Dedicated iterations were done in conjunction with both industrial and payload studies to harmonise the interfaces between the s/c and the payload, and to consolidate the payload accommodation. Recently the ESA Mission Adoption Review has successfully been concluded. This definition study report presents a summary of the very large body of work that has been undertaken on the Ariel mission over the 30-month period of the Ariel definition phase. As such, it represents the contributions of a large number of parties (ESA, industry, institutes and universities from 17 ESA member states, NASA CASE team), encompassing a very large number of people.

4th Symposium on Space Educational Activities

This work describes the successful education experience for five years of space engineering educa... more This work describes the successful education experience for five years of space engineering education at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Madrid, Spain. The MSc. in Space Systems (MUSE, Máster Universitario en Sistemas Espaciales) is a 2-year and 120-ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) master program organized by the Microgravity Institute ‘Ignacio Da Riva’ (IDR/UPM), a research institute of UPM with extensive experience in the space sector. The teaching methodology is oriented to Project Based Learning (PBL), taking advantage of the IDR/UPM Institute experience. The main purposes are to share the IDR/UPM knowledge with the students and promote their collaboration with several space scientific institutions, both national and international. In the present work, the most relevant characteristics of this master program are described, highlighting the importance of the student’s participation in actual missions. In addition, to offer practical cases in al...

4th Symposium on Space Educational Activities

In combination with magnetometers, solar sensors are one of the most used instruments for determi... more In combination with magnetometers, solar sensors are one of the most used instruments for determining the attitude of small satellites. These devices use the photoelectric effect to produce an electrical current. This electrical current, or the voltage associated with the electrical circuit of the solar sensor, is measured in order to compute the angle of incident of the sun with the normal direction of the sensor. Then, together with the computed angles of other solar sensors on different faces of the satellite, the sun's direction in relation to a spacecraft can be calculated. Solar sensors are simple devices whose low-cost design based on photodiodes can be developed by students. During the design and fabrication process of a solar sensor, one of the most important tasks is the accurate estimation of the sensor response in the space radiative environment. It is possible to simulate the Sun’s radiation spectrum, but the equipment and facilities needed are costly for a universi...

The Master in Space Systems (Máster Universitario en Sistemas Espaciales – MUSE) at UPM (Universi... more The Master in Space Systems (Máster Universitario en Sistemas Espaciales – MUSE) at UPM (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid) is an academic program organized at Instituto Universitario de Microgravedad “Ignacio Da Riva” (IDR/UPM) research institute. This is a 2-year Project Based Learning (PBL) master program which started in 2014. Since the first year of the MUSE, the students have participated actively in the development and construction of the UPMSat-2, an educational, scientific and in-orbit technological demonstration 50 kg-class microsatellite launched on September 2nd, 2020. Students from MUSE have participated in all phases of the mission, from the design of subsystems to in-orbit operation, and including integration, calibration, and testing. In the present work, the most relevant characteristics of this master program are described, the importance of the satellite’s design and development within the academic tasks being emphasized. Graduated MUSE students have a high employ...

• 2-year Master Program, 120 ECTS • Project Based Learning • Skilled academic staff (more than 45... more • 2-year Master Program, 120 ECTS • Project Based Learning • Skilled academic staff (more than 45 years of experience in projects related to space engineering: thermal control, structures, microgravity effects on fluids…).

The IDR/UPM Institute established a Concurrent Design Facility (CDF) for space mission design in ... more The IDR/UPM Institute established a Concurrent Design Facility (CDF) for space mission design in 2011 This facility was intended for both academic use and technical work on space projects It is based on the Open Concurrent Design Tool from ESA, and it is improved every year by means of new modules developed by the students and the professors, collaborations with partners, challenges, etc

The UPMSat-2 micro-satellite was launched on September the 3rd 2020 at 01:51:10 UTC from Kourou s... more The UPMSat-2 micro-satellite was launched on September the 3rd 2020 at 01:51:10 UTC from Kourou spaceport in French Guyana. The VV16 Vega Flight has been the first low Earth orbit rideshare commercial flight with a total of 53 satellites (7 of them micro-satellites) to be released by the launch vehicle, arranged in the modular SSMS (Small Spacecraft Mission Service) dispenser. UPMSat-2 is an educational, scientific and in-orbit technological demonstration microsatellite project led by the IDR/UPM research institute from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Spain. This mission can be considered as a logical extension of the IDR/UPM Institute activities focused on designing small satellites to be used as educational platforms of first level. Thereby, UPMSat-2 (as well as its precursor, the UPMSat-1) has the main objective to give students the competences for designing, analyzing, manufacturing, integrating, testing and operating the platform. UPMSat-2 also includes a set of scient...

El satélite universitario UPMSat-2 fue lanzado el 2 de septiembre de 2020 desde la Guayana France... more El satélite universitario UPMSat-2 fue lanzado el 2 de septiembre de 2020 desde la Guayana Francesa en un vehículo lanzador VEGA, dentro de la misión VV16, que incluía la puesta en órbita de 7 micro-satélites y 46 nanosatélites. Con este hito se completaba la primera parte de una misión que comenzó oficialmente en 2011, y que había sido precedida por el UPMSat-1, primer satélite universitario español y décima misión universitaria de la Historia. En este trabajo se describen brevemente algunos aspectos. relevantes de esta misión

Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part G: Journal of Aerospace Engineering, 2015

In this paper, the experimental results of an unconventional joined-wing aircraft configuration a... more In this paper, the experimental results of an unconventional joined-wing aircraft configuration are presented. The test model uses two different wings, forward and rear, both joined in tandem and forming diamond shapes both in plant and front views. The wings are joined in such a way that it is possible to change the rear wing dihedral angle values and the rear wing sweep angle values in 25 different positions that modify the relative distance and the relative height between the wings. To measure the system aerodynamic coefficients it is necessary to perform wind tunnel tests. The data presented corresponds to the lift, drag and induced drag aerodynamic coefficients, as well as the aerodynamic efficiency and the parameter for minimum required power, from the calculated values of the lift and drag time series measured by a 6-axis force and torque sensor. The results show the influence on the aerodynamic coefficients of the rear wing sweep and dihedral angles parameters. As a main res...

In recent years, the development of small-size satellites by companies, research institutions and... more In recent years, the development of small-size satellites by companies, research institutions and universities have become common practice. This terend is based on the need for providing an easy and low-cost access to space for those institutions and companies that cannot afford the use of the usual big industrial platforms. In this context, the IDR/UPM Institute (Instituto Universitario de Microgravedad ‘Ignacio Da Riva’) of Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, has been developing the UPMSat-2 microsatellite along the past years. This is one of the most relevant projects in the current space engineering activities at IDR/UPM, which integrates university professors, research staff of IDR/UPM, and students of the Master in Space Systems (MUSE). Going back to the UPMSat-2 mission, it should be underlined that this type of small-size satellite requires reliable communication systems able to ensure the quality of the communication link between the satellite and ground control, but they mu...

The influence of anemometer rotor shape parameters, such as the cups’ front area or their center ... more The influence of anemometer rotor shape parameters, such as the cups’ front area or their center rotation radius on the anemometer’s performance was analyzed. This analysis was based on calibrations performed on two different anemometers (one based on magnet system output signal, and the other one based on an opto-electronic system output signal), tested with 21 different rotors. The results were compared to the ones resulting from classical analytical models. The results clearly showed a linear dependency of both calibration constants, the slope and the offset, on the cups’ center rotation radius, the influence of the front area of the cups also being observed. The analytical model of Kondo et al. was proved to be accurate if it is based on precise data related to the aerodynamic behavior of a rotor’s cup.

The design process of an Electrical Power Subsystem (EPS) for a space mission is a key factor in ... more The design process of an Electrical Power Subsystem (EPS) for a space mission is a key factor in order to be successful. During last decades, components included in this subsystem have been progressively released from a more and more wide range of suppliers. This fact has allowed access to the space power technologies to an increased number of users, resulting in the arrival of COTS elements to the design and development of space power subsystems (specially in nanosats). In the present work, the development of a Li-Ion battery at IDR/UPM based on COTS elements for the UNION/Lian-He mission is described.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 2021

This paper presents the development of the UPMSat-2 sun sensor, from the design to on-orbit opera... more This paper presents the development of the UPMSat-2 sun sensor, from the design to on-orbit operation. It also includes the testing of the instrument, one of the most important tasks that needs to be performed to operate a sensor with precision. The UPMSat-2 solar sensor has been designed, tested, and manufactured at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) using 3D printing and COTS (photodiodes). The work described in this paper was carried out by students and teachers of the Master in Space Systems (Máster Universitario en Sistemas Espaciales—MUSE). The solar sensor is composed of six photodiodes that are divided into two sets; each set is held and oriented on the satellite by its corresponding support printed in Delrin. The paper describes the choice of components, the electrical diagram, and the manufacture of the supports. The methodology followed to obtain the response curve of each photodiode is simple and inexpensive, as it requires a limited number of instruments and to...

Key Science Questions to be Addressed • What are the physical processes shaping planetary atmosph... more Key Science Questions to be Addressed • What are the physical processes shaping planetary atmospheres? • What are exoplanets made of? • How do planets and planetary systems form and evolve? Science Objectives (Chapter 2) Ariel Definition Study Report page 3 Foreword The concept of a mission devoted to atmospheric characterization of exoplanets through transit spectroscopy was first considered in Europe in 2007, shortly after the DARWIN proposal submitted to ESA for the first Cosmic Vision call for L-class missions was rejected because of the need for further scientific and technical developments. Following the decision, both ESA (EP-RAT panel report, October 2010) and the Exoplanetary Community (Blue Dot Team-Barcelona conference, September 2009) started a discussion to define a roadmap for exoplanetary research. Both groups concluded that an intermediate step was needed, both scientifically and technically, before the characterisation of Earth-like planets could be tackled, and recommended a transit spectroscopy mission as a first step to atmospheric characterisation. A short study was undertaken at ESTEC in the context of the ExoPlanet Roadmap Advisory Team mandate under the name ESM (Exoplanet Spectroscopy Mission). Following this study the Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory (EChO) was proposed and accepted for assessment phase study in the context of the ESA Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 programme M3 medium class mission opportunity. Although eventually not selected, the EChO study 1 allowed further development of the technical building blocks and the science case for an eventual transit spectroscopy mission. In response to the call for the next medium class opportunity, Cosmic Vision M4, a proposal was submitted in January 2015: the Atmospheric Remote-sensing InfraRed Large-survey (ARIEL). The mission was one of the three selected in June 2015 for study in a Phase 0/A, a competitive assessment phase 2. ARIEL was eventually selected as M4 in March 2018, and went into Phase B1, the definition study phase. The name of the mission has been changed to Ariel after selection. During Phase B1, the science case was studied in depth and consolidated under auspices of the Science Advisory Team, the bulk of the work being performed in a large number of science working groups in the Ariel Mission Consortium (AMC). The ESA Study Team and AMC reviewed the mission requirements, the technical design and analysis of the complete payload module (including telescope, instruments, guidance system and supporting infrastructure). The AMC developed an end-to-end performance simulator of the complete system. Two industrial contractors (Airbus Defence and Space, France and ThalesAlenia Space, France) reviewed the mission requirements, the technical design and analysis of the s/c and performed a programmatic analysis of the mission. Dedicated iterations were done in conjunction with both industrial and payload studies to harmonise the interfaces between the s/c and the payload, and to consolidate the payload accommodation. Recently the ESA Mission Adoption Review has successfully been concluded. This definition study report presents a summary of the very large body of work that has been undertaken on the Ariel mission over the 30-month period of the Ariel definition phase. As such, it represents the contributions of a large number of parties (ESA, industry, institutes and universities from 17 ESA member states, NASA CASE team), encompassing a very large number of people.

Space Telescopes and Instrumentation 2022: Optical, Infrared, and Millimeter Wave

European Space Agency, Nov 30, 2020

Key Science Questions to be Addressed • What are the physical processes shaping planetary atmosph... more Key Science Questions to be Addressed • What are the physical processes shaping planetary atmospheres? • What are exoplanets made of? • How do planets and planetary systems form and evolve? Science Objectives (Chapter 2) Ariel Definition Study Report page 3 Foreword The concept of a mission devoted to atmospheric characterization of exoplanets through transit spectroscopy was first considered in Europe in 2007, shortly after the DARWIN proposal submitted to ESA for the first Cosmic Vision call for L-class missions was rejected because of the need for further scientific and technical developments. Following the decision, both ESA (EP-RAT panel report, October 2010) and the Exoplanetary Community (Blue Dot Team-Barcelona conference, September 2009) started a discussion to define a roadmap for exoplanetary research. Both groups concluded that an intermediate step was needed, both scientifically and technically, before the characterisation of Earth-like planets could be tackled, and recommended a transit spectroscopy mission as a first step to atmospheric characterisation. A short study was undertaken at ESTEC in the context of the ExoPlanet Roadmap Advisory Team mandate under the name ESM (Exoplanet Spectroscopy Mission). Following this study the Exoplanet Characterisation Observatory (EChO) was proposed and accepted for assessment phase study in the context of the ESA Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 programme M3 medium class mission opportunity. Although eventually not selected, the EChO study 1 allowed further development of the technical building blocks and the science case for an eventual transit spectroscopy mission. In response to the call for the next medium class opportunity, Cosmic Vision M4, a proposal was submitted in January 2015: the Atmospheric Remote-sensing InfraRed Large-survey (ARIEL). The mission was one of the three selected in June 2015 for study in a Phase 0/A, a competitive assessment phase 2. ARIEL was eventually selected as M4 in March 2018, and went into Phase B1, the definition study phase. The name of the mission has been changed to Ariel after selection. During Phase B1, the science case was studied in depth and consolidated under auspices of the Science Advisory Team, the bulk of the work being performed in a large number of science working groups in the Ariel Mission Consortium (AMC). The ESA Study Team and AMC reviewed the mission requirements, the technical design and analysis of the complete payload module (including telescope, instruments, guidance system and supporting infrastructure). The AMC developed an end-to-end performance simulator of the complete system. Two industrial contractors (Airbus Defence and Space, France and ThalesAlenia Space, France) reviewed the mission requirements, the technical design and analysis of the s/c and performed a programmatic analysis of the mission. Dedicated iterations were done in conjunction with both industrial and payload studies to harmonise the interfaces between the s/c and the payload, and to consolidate the payload accommodation. Recently the ESA Mission Adoption Review has successfully been concluded. This definition study report presents a summary of the very large body of work that has been undertaken on the Ariel mission over the 30-month period of the Ariel definition phase. As such, it represents the contributions of a large number of parties (ESA, industry, institutes and universities from 17 ESA member states, NASA CASE team), encompassing a very large number of people.

4th Symposium on Space Educational Activities

This work describes the successful education experience for five years of space engineering educa... more This work describes the successful education experience for five years of space engineering education at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Madrid, Spain. The MSc. in Space Systems (MUSE, Máster Universitario en Sistemas Espaciales) is a 2-year and 120-ECTS (European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System) master program organized by the Microgravity Institute ‘Ignacio Da Riva’ (IDR/UPM), a research institute of UPM with extensive experience in the space sector. The teaching methodology is oriented to Project Based Learning (PBL), taking advantage of the IDR/UPM Institute experience. The main purposes are to share the IDR/UPM knowledge with the students and promote their collaboration with several space scientific institutions, both national and international. In the present work, the most relevant characteristics of this master program are described, highlighting the importance of the student’s participation in actual missions. In addition, to offer practical cases in al...

4th Symposium on Space Educational Activities

In combination with magnetometers, solar sensors are one of the most used instruments for determi... more In combination with magnetometers, solar sensors are one of the most used instruments for determining the attitude of small satellites. These devices use the photoelectric effect to produce an electrical current. This electrical current, or the voltage associated with the electrical circuit of the solar sensor, is measured in order to compute the angle of incident of the sun with the normal direction of the sensor. Then, together with the computed angles of other solar sensors on different faces of the satellite, the sun's direction in relation to a spacecraft can be calculated. Solar sensors are simple devices whose low-cost design based on photodiodes can be developed by students. During the design and fabrication process of a solar sensor, one of the most important tasks is the accurate estimation of the sensor response in the space radiative environment. It is possible to simulate the Sun’s radiation spectrum, but the equipment and facilities needed are costly for a universi...

The Master in Space Systems (Máster Universitario en Sistemas Espaciales – MUSE) at UPM (Universi... more The Master in Space Systems (Máster Universitario en Sistemas Espaciales – MUSE) at UPM (Universidad Politécnica de Madrid) is an academic program organized at Instituto Universitario de Microgravedad “Ignacio Da Riva” (IDR/UPM) research institute. This is a 2-year Project Based Learning (PBL) master program which started in 2014. Since the first year of the MUSE, the students have participated actively in the development and construction of the UPMSat-2, an educational, scientific and in-orbit technological demonstration 50 kg-class microsatellite launched on September 2nd, 2020. Students from MUSE have participated in all phases of the mission, from the design of subsystems to in-orbit operation, and including integration, calibration, and testing. In the present work, the most relevant characteristics of this master program are described, the importance of the satellite’s design and development within the academic tasks being emphasized. Graduated MUSE students have a high employ...

• 2-year Master Program, 120 ECTS • Project Based Learning • Skilled academic staff (more than 45... more • 2-year Master Program, 120 ECTS • Project Based Learning • Skilled academic staff (more than 45 years of experience in projects related to space engineering: thermal control, structures, microgravity effects on fluids…).

The IDR/UPM Institute established a Concurrent Design Facility (CDF) for space mission design in ... more The IDR/UPM Institute established a Concurrent Design Facility (CDF) for space mission design in 2011 This facility was intended for both academic use and technical work on space projects It is based on the Open Concurrent Design Tool from ESA, and it is improved every year by means of new modules developed by the students and the professors, collaborations with partners, challenges, etc

The UPMSat-2 micro-satellite was launched on September the 3rd 2020 at 01:51:10 UTC from Kourou s... more The UPMSat-2 micro-satellite was launched on September the 3rd 2020 at 01:51:10 UTC from Kourou spaceport in French Guyana. The VV16 Vega Flight has been the first low Earth orbit rideshare commercial flight with a total of 53 satellites (7 of them micro-satellites) to be released by the launch vehicle, arranged in the modular SSMS (Small Spacecraft Mission Service) dispenser. UPMSat-2 is an educational, scientific and in-orbit technological demonstration microsatellite project led by the IDR/UPM research institute from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM), Spain. This mission can be considered as a logical extension of the IDR/UPM Institute activities focused on designing small satellites to be used as educational platforms of first level. Thereby, UPMSat-2 (as well as its precursor, the UPMSat-1) has the main objective to give students the competences for designing, analyzing, manufacturing, integrating, testing and operating the platform. UPMSat-2 also includes a set of scient...

El satélite universitario UPMSat-2 fue lanzado el 2 de septiembre de 2020 desde la Guayana France... more El satélite universitario UPMSat-2 fue lanzado el 2 de septiembre de 2020 desde la Guayana Francesa en un vehículo lanzador VEGA, dentro de la misión VV16, que incluía la puesta en órbita de 7 micro-satélites y 46 nanosatélites. Con este hito se completaba la primera parte de una misión que comenzó oficialmente en 2011, y que había sido precedida por el UPMSat-1, primer satélite universitario español y décima misión universitaria de la Historia. En este trabajo se describen brevemente algunos aspectos. relevantes de esta misión

Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part G: Journal of Aerospace Engineering, 2015

In this paper, the experimental results of an unconventional joined-wing aircraft configuration a... more In this paper, the experimental results of an unconventional joined-wing aircraft configuration are presented. The test model uses two different wings, forward and rear, both joined in tandem and forming diamond shapes both in plant and front views. The wings are joined in such a way that it is possible to change the rear wing dihedral angle values and the rear wing sweep angle values in 25 different positions that modify the relative distance and the relative height between the wings. To measure the system aerodynamic coefficients it is necessary to perform wind tunnel tests. The data presented corresponds to the lift, drag and induced drag aerodynamic coefficients, as well as the aerodynamic efficiency and the parameter for minimum required power, from the calculated values of the lift and drag time series measured by a 6-axis force and torque sensor. The results show the influence on the aerodynamic coefficients of the rear wing sweep and dihedral angles parameters. As a main res...

In recent years, the development of small-size satellites by companies, research institutions and... more In recent years, the development of small-size satellites by companies, research institutions and universities have become common practice. This terend is based on the need for providing an easy and low-cost access to space for those institutions and companies that cannot afford the use of the usual big industrial platforms. In this context, the IDR/UPM Institute (Instituto Universitario de Microgravedad ‘Ignacio Da Riva’) of Universidad Politecnica de Madrid, has been developing the UPMSat-2 microsatellite along the past years. This is one of the most relevant projects in the current space engineering activities at IDR/UPM, which integrates university professors, research staff of IDR/UPM, and students of the Master in Space Systems (MUSE). Going back to the UPMSat-2 mission, it should be underlined that this type of small-size satellite requires reliable communication systems able to ensure the quality of the communication link between the satellite and ground control, but they mu...

The influence of anemometer rotor shape parameters, such as the cups’ front area or their center ... more The influence of anemometer rotor shape parameters, such as the cups’ front area or their center rotation radius on the anemometer’s performance was analyzed. This analysis was based on calibrations performed on two different anemometers (one based on magnet system output signal, and the other one based on an opto-electronic system output signal), tested with 21 different rotors. The results were compared to the ones resulting from classical analytical models. The results clearly showed a linear dependency of both calibration constants, the slope and the offset, on the cups’ center rotation radius, the influence of the front area of the cups also being observed. The analytical model of Kondo et al. was proved to be accurate if it is based on precise data related to the aerodynamic behavior of a rotor’s cup.

The design process of an Electrical Power Subsystem (EPS) for a space mission is a key factor in ... more The design process of an Electrical Power Subsystem (EPS) for a space mission is a key factor in order to be successful. During last decades, components included in this subsystem have been progressively released from a more and more wide range of suppliers. This fact has allowed access to the space power technologies to an increased number of users, resulting in the arrival of COTS elements to the design and development of space power subsystems (specially in nanosats). In the present work, the development of a Li-Ion battery at IDR/UPM based on COTS elements for the UNION/Lian-He mission is described.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 2021

This paper presents the development of the UPMSat-2 sun sensor, from the design to on-orbit opera... more This paper presents the development of the UPMSat-2 sun sensor, from the design to on-orbit operation. It also includes the testing of the instrument, one of the most important tasks that needs to be performed to operate a sensor with precision. The UPMSat-2 solar sensor has been designed, tested, and manufactured at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) using 3D printing and COTS (photodiodes). The work described in this paper was carried out by students and teachers of the Master in Space Systems (Máster Universitario en Sistemas Espaciales—MUSE). The solar sensor is composed of six photodiodes that are divided into two sets; each set is held and oriented on the satellite by its corresponding support printed in Delrin. The paper describes the choice of components, the electrical diagram, and the manufacture of the supports. The methodology followed to obtain the response curve of each photodiode is simple and inexpensive, as it requires a limited number of instruments and to...