SDC

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SDC
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The Venetia BurneyStudent Dust Counter (SDC)

• A Presentation to the National Council of Space
  Grant Directors

Michael T. McGrath Engineering Director Laboratory
for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) The
University of Colorado at Boulder
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SDC Project -- A New Kind of EPO

• EPO Goal Give students a chance to design,
  build, operate, study data from a planetary
  flight experiment
• Objective Students have the primary
  responsibility for the design and development of
  the SDC
• Science Goal Make the first dust density size
  spectrum observations beyond 18 AU
• Suggested by New Horizons PI Dr. Alan Stern
• PI Mihaly Horanyi Invited from POSSE team
• Premier Opportunity on a NASA Mission
• Performance Bar Incredibly High
• High Visibility
• For Students
• Extraordinary Education and Training Opportunity
• Once in a Lifetime Experience

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Student Instruments on NASA Missions

• Risk
• Technical
• Interface to Spacecraft System
• Benign Failure Mode
• Limited Interaction i.e. Power On
• Programmatic
• Fixed Launch Date
• Academic Calendar

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Not Business As Usual

• Educational Process
• Allowance for Trial and Error Learning
• Status Meetings
• Cross Disciplinary Classroom
• Maturing Process
• Implications for Outcome
• Emotional Commitment
• No Tests or Grades
• Extraordinary Teaching Environment
• Continual Transfer of Information
• Professional Staff as Teachers
• Not Efficient

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What is SDC?

• Active Area of 0.1 m2
• Detector Assembly (18 x 12)
• Electronics Box (5x8x2)
• Intra-Harness
• 2 Kg 5 Watts

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How It Works

• Polyvinylidene Fluoride (PVDF)
• Polarized
• Pyroelectric Response
• Impact Removes Material
• Change in Potential
• Understand Mass and Size
• Difficult Measurement
• Impact Event 0.1 Nanosecond
• Realistic 0.1 Microsecond
• Compromises

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The First Students
Anselm Fernandez, Flemming Christiansen, Chelsea
Bryant, Gene Holland
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Professional Support and SDC Organization Chart
Principal Investigator Dr. Mihaly Horanyi
Program Manager Gene Holland
EPO
Fran Bagenal
Cori Krauss
Thermal Subsystem
PVDF Detector Development
Bret Lamprecht
Ginger Drake
Gene Holland
Chelsey Bryant
Nick Bunch
Mike Neeland
At Least One LASP Professional Oversees Each
Subsystem
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Milestones
PDR 6/2003 Heidelberg
tests 7/2003 CDR
10/2003 PER 6/2004 PSR
8/2004 Ship
9/2004
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Electronics Box
Analog Board

• Digital Board

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Testing
University of Chicago LASP MPI-K Heidelberg,
Germany
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New Horizons Spacecraft at JHU/APL
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Why Dust and This Mission?

• Interplanetary and Interstellar Dust
• Knowledge Ends at Saturn
• Pioneer, Cassini, Ulysses, Galileo
• New Horizons Mission and Spacecraft Ideal
• Stable Thermal Environment
• Mission Design -- Quiet Due to Hibernation
  Periods
• Past Experience with Project Staff

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When and Where
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Results lasp.colorado.edu/sdc
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Looking Back

• Professional Mentorship Model Validated
• Initial Student-Directed Team Experienced
  Frustration
• Students Excel Given Direction and Support
• Technical Interface Was Quickly Developed
• Concerns Were Minimized
• Programmatic Interface Was Challenging
• Perception of Risk Remained
• New Horizons Essentially a Class A Mission
• Full NASA Oversight and Reviews
• Strong Emotional Commitment to Success
• Passion
• Institutional Commitment to Program
• Financial and Programmatic Resources
• Time, Attention and Direction