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ADS-B Technology for Reusable Launch Vehicles

PI Massood Towhidnejad

For this project, Embry-Riddle faculty and students are collaborating with the sponsor, the FAA Office of Commercial Space Transportation, and the MITRE Corporation to produce an ADS-B technology capable of supporting the tracking of commercial space operations of sounding rockets and reusable launch vehicles.

This project makes use of the MITRE UAT Beacon Radio Transmit Only design, but re-engineers numerous components including the GPS, firmware, and environmental shielding.This prototype has flown to altitudes greater than 100,000 ft. on high altitude balloons, and in November 2013 flew to an altitude of 384,100 ft. onboard a the Up Aerospace SL-8 sounding rocket providing the vehicle's GPS coordinates at once per second for 73% of the total flight (over 90% of descent). This is currently the highest that UAT-based ADS-B technology has successfully flown and been demonstrated. It is currently manifest for integration and testing on Virgin Galactic's Spaceship 2 for an upcoming test spaceflight (date undisclosed).


Research Dates

05/01/2011 to 09/30/2015

Researchers

  • Richard S. Stansbury

    Richard S. Stansbury

    Department
    Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Dept
    Degrees
    Ph.D., M.S., B.S., University of Kansas
  • Massood Towhidnejad

    Massood Towhidnejad

    Department
    Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Dept
    Degrees
    Ph.D., M.S., B.S., University of Central Florida

Categories: Faculty-Staff