CUSAT Students Develops Reusable Payload Retrieval System

KOCHI:
How can the use-and-throw Radio sonde costing around Rs. 12,000/- used by Advance Centre for Atmospheric Radar Research (ACARR) be saved from being lost after each launch?

How can the loss of huge amount of money be saved? How can the instrument once launched be retrieved after use, for re-use later? These were the questions that plagued the mind of a few of the 1 st year B.Tech EC students of School of Engineering of CUSAT after their first visit to ACARR in the campus.

Though the hectic academic activity that ensued kept an instant solution at bay, the technical knowledge they
achieved during the passage of each semester enabled them to seek an answer to their pestering problem. Thus, Timothy Simon Thomas (Mission Director), Joseph Jojo. A (Flight Director) and Arjun E.S. (Sponsorship Head) teamed up with Mohammed Hafiz (Treasurer), Sreekanth Santhosh (Outreach Head), A. Aaron  Renny (Payload Communication Head), K. Navaneeth (Payload Integration Head), Athul Raj (Ground Operations Head), and Ujwal C (Media Head), and with Dr. Rekha K. James and Unni. A. M as Staff co-ordinators.

The result is a high altitude payload retrieval system which successfully and safely brought down the payload which scaled up to a height of 30,000 meters, and sent data to earth.

“The payload went up to 30 kms. in the atmosphere. The target of the mission was to prove that the payload could be launched to high altitudes, tracked, retrieved and re-used”, said Timothy Simon. Sensors and equipments like Radio sonde could be sent up like this and brought back and re-used avoiding the loss of huge amounts for each launch. Alternatives like gliders for the parachute based  descend sequence are being tested and will be displayed at
‘Dishna-2020’, technical expo to be organized in February.

There will also a demonstration launch of the system at the expo”, the students said. This is a novel invention claimed to be the first of its kind in the country. As it is possible to retrieve, cameras facilitating VR footage can be used in such payloads, which will make atmospheric research much easier.

The students said that they are planning a student body for the purpose of conducting such research named as ‘CUSAT space program’. Engineers of CUSAT Radar Centre Titu K. Samson, Rakesh V, Rijoy Rebello, Scientist Dr. M.G. Manoj, Research Scholar  Simon C and Technical officer of Electronics Department  P. P. Resel  gave necessary guidance. For more information: Timothy- Phone: 628287798, Joseph JoJo – Phone: 7012215935