McMaster NEUDOSE

McMaster NEUtron DOSimetry and Exploration (NEUDOSE) is a team of approximately 70 students that are designing and fabricating McMaster's first small satellite (CubeSat). The mission is 1 of 15 selected projects to participate in the Canadian CubeSat Project (CCP) with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). The project requires the team to complete various phases of design and testing before the 2022 launch. The satellite will be launched into low earth orbit to study the effects of ionizing radiation on the human body. There are several subsystems that function independently, however there are weekly systems meetings to allow for cross subsystem collaboration. The team presents design reviews directly to the CSA in order to receive feedback and guidance on major design decisions. McMaster NEUDOSE allows students to work together and gain technical experiences that are unique and applicable to the space industry. I have been a part of the Electrical Power system subteam since April 2020 as the Solar Panel Specialist.

My role as the solar panel specialist is to design, fabricate and test the custom solar panels that will be flown on the satellite. To do this I have learned how to use the industry standard PCB Design software; Altium Designer. I have worked with the Mechanical subteam to finalize a simpler mounting plan of the solar panels onto the actual satellite, in order to reduce complexity in the procedure. I have also been working closely with other members on the team to try and maximize the panels through adjusting the design to ensure the maximum power is generated. I have learned a lot about design and electrical engineering applications through my time on the team. I am also designing the same panels as for the main mission with 'dummy' solar cell footprints, for two smaller test missions on stratospheric balloons. These stratospheric balloon test missions will utilizing 'dummy' solar cells in order for us to test the mechanical withstandability of the panels.