805 research outputs found
Au Revoir, Chantal
No full textArticle on Chantal Akerman the artist and her exhibition at Ambika P3 curated by the author in the context of her untimely death
Au Revoir, Chantal [French]
No full textArticle translated and adapted in French on Chantal Akerman the artist and her exhibition at Ambika P3 curated by the author in the context of her untimely death
UNISAT-5: A MICROSATELLITE FOR SPACE DEBRIS MONITORING
No full textSpace missions must take into account a relatively new threat, which is represented by space debris. This problem
has arisen in the last 25 years and requires specific strategies for mitigation, with the main intent of avoiding
collisions between orbital debris and spacecraft. Space debris monitoring and orbit determination is an essential
premise to this task. In the last decade GAUSS has been involved in optical space debris surveillance, participating
to the IADC joint observation campaign and manufacturing the first Italian observatory completely dedicated to
space debris monitoring. GAUSS has been also a pioneer in educational microsatellites, namely with UNISAT,
EDUSAT and UniCubeSat-GG missions. Combining these two experiences GAUSS students and researchers are
designing a microsatellite with a compact digital imaging system on board. The UniSat-5 mission purpose will be
space debris monitoring, taking advantage of an in situ observation above Earth’s atmosphere. One of the key
elements of observing on orbit is that many atmospheric phenomena would be avoided, such as diffraction and EM
absorption. Hence images would gain more contrast and solar spectral irradiance would be higher for the whole
visible spectrum. The system is composed of a Schmidt-Cassegrain reflector, a camera, C band and S band
transceivers and two antennas. The system is independent from the rest of the spacecraft. The camera is equipped
with a panchromatic 5Mpix sensor. The transceivers and their custom-designed antennas operate on ISM 2.4GHz
and 5GHz Wi-Fi bands, and Unisat-5 OBDH can switch between the two. The ground segment is composed of a
high gain antenna dish, which will be used to establish a TCP/IP wireless link. Every component of this system is an
off-the-shelf product. The space debris observation will work in pair with the attitude determination system, as well
as the orbit determination system. A dedicated software will provide information on the amount of possible
observable targets. The high relative angular velocities and the consequent arc will provide data for a rough initial
orbit determination. Further observations with the correlation of the targets are required to better estimate the orbit.
UniSat-5 micro-satellite will be launched during Q4 2012 by a Kosmotras DNEPR LV; it will be injected in a Sun
Synchronous Orbit. UniSat-5 will be the first university satellite for space debris monitoring, and it will test the
technology for the future design of a formation flight for on orbit optical debris detection
The films of Chantal Akerman : a cinema of displacements
No full textThis thesis attempts to broaden the critical boundaries within which the films of
Chantal Akerman have been discussed. First, it extends analysis from Akerman's
70s to her 80s and 90s films. Second, it argues that as well as her gender and
aesthetic identities, Akerman's Belgian and Jewish identities should be
acknowledged. Finally, it suggests that each of these four identities: woman,
independent film-maker, Belgian and Jewish allow her a position of marginality,
figured in her films through the trope of 'displacement'.
The structure of the thesis is two-fold: it extends discussion of Akerman's cinema to
films not previously considered, and through this extension engages with
contemporary issues in film and cultural theory such as female authorship,
independent and national, and marginal cinemas. Chapter one `Woman' and chapter
two `Independent' extend the reading of gender and sexuality and formal and
aesthetic innovation in Akerman's cinema. In the first chapter this is done through
consideration of the films Golden Eighties (1986) and Nuit et jour (1990), while in
the second her short films, video work and work for television are examined.
My third and fourth chapters offer areas of Akerman's work which have not
previously been studied. Chapter three, `Belgian', considers the significance of
Akerman's nationality for her film-making while engaging with theories around
national cinema. It examines the possibility of a `Belgian national cinema' and the
intersections which arise between this and Akerman's cinema, especially around
Toute une nuit (1982). Finally, in my fourth chapter, `Jewish', I use Histoires
d'Amerigue (1989) and D'Est (1993) to argue that Akerman's is a `wandering'
cinema, in which she is constantly examining the homelessness and displacement
that her Jewishness engenders
Real-Time Contrail Monitoring and Mitigation Using CubeSat Constellations
No full textContrails, or condensation trails, left by aircraft, significantly contribute to global warming by trapping heat in the Earth’s atmosphere. Despite their critical role in climate dynamics, the environmental impact of contrails remains underexplored. This research addresses this gap by focusing on the use of CubeSats for real-time contrail monitoring, specifically over major air routes such as the Europe–North Atlantic Corridor. The study proposes a 3 × 3 CubeSat constellation in highly eccentric orbits, designed to maximize coverage and data acquisition efficiency. Simulation results indicate that this configuration can provide nearly continuous monitoring with optimized satellite handovers, reducing blackout periods and ensuring robust multi-satellite visibility. A machine learning-based system integrating space-based humidity and temperature data to predict contrail formation and inform flight path adjustments is proposed, thereby mitigating environmental impact. The findings emphasize the potential of CubeSat constellations to revolutionize atmospheric monitoring practices, offering a cost-effective solution that aligns with global sustainability efforts, particularly the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 13 (Climate Action). This research represents a significant step forward in understanding aviation’s non-CO2 climate impact and demonstrates the feasibility of real-time contrail mitigation through satellite technology
Next Generation CubeSats and SmallSats: Enabling Technologies, Missions, and Markets
No full textNext Generation of CubeSats and SmallSats: Enabling Technologies, Missions, and Markets provides a comprehensive understanding of the small and medium sized satellite approach and its potentialities and limitations. The book analyzes promising applications (e.g., constellations and distributed systems, small science platforms that overachieve relative to their development time and cost) as paradigm-shifting solutions for space exploitation, with an analysis of market statistics and trends and a prediction of where the technologies, and consequently, the field is heading in the next decade. The book also provides a thorough analysis of CubeSat potentialities and applications, and addresses unique technical approaches and systems strategies. Throughout key sections (introduction and background, technology details, systems, applications, and future prospects), the book provides basic design tools scaled to the small satellite problem, assesses the technological state-of-the-art, and describes the most recent advancements with a look to the near future. This new book is for aerospace engineering professionals, advanced students, and designers seeking a broad view of the CubeSat world with a brief historical background, strategies, applications, mission scenarios, new challenges and upcoming advances
FBG optical sensors for environmental tests of microsatellites
No full textThe use of Fiber Bragg grating sensors is growing in many fields thanks to their properties such as the immunity to electric and magnetic fields and the capability to realize a distributed network of sensors exploiting the multiplexing capabilities. In this paper the use of FBG sensors during the environmental tests performed on a specimen in the thermo-vacuum chamber of the LARES-LAB will be presented. The test chamber has been realized for the optical tests of the LARES satellite, launched in 2012 and now, thanks to the small size of the test chamber, the facility can be proficiently used for testing small satellites as cubesats and nanosats. The chamber has been upgraded adding an optical feed-through suitable for the use of FBG sensors that will let the real-time monitoring of the conditions of the test. A test campaign will be described and a specimen will be monitored using both optical strain gauges and standard sensors, thermal and mechanical stress will be applied in order to perform a comparison of the behavior of the two types of sensors. The validation of the performances of the FBG sensors could open the road for a new methodology for testing satellites with a cheaper and more accurate stress monitoring system. Copyright © 2016 by the International Astronautical Federation (IAF). All rights reserved
Microsatellite optical payload for in-situ space debris monitoring
No full textSpace debris are a concern for operative satellites and human missions. This problem, arisen in the last 25 years and enhanced in LEO orbit by recent space debris-creation events (ASAT-test of 2007, Iridium33-Cosmos2251 collision of 2009), requires specific strategies to know accurately the orbital debris environment, with the main intent of avoiding collisions between orbital debris and spacecrafts. Since nineties, the Group of Astrodynamics of the University "Sapienza" (GAUSS) of Rome has been involved in optical surveillance of space debris from SpaDE ground based observatory and in UNISAT microsatellite projects (four satellites have been launched from Baykonur cosmodrome in Kazakistan using the Dnepr space launch vehicle). In 2008 GAUSS group started the feasibility study of an UNISAT mission with the aim to identify small LEO space debris with a LEO space based optical system, taking advantage of an observation above Earth's atmosphere. During the last two years, the mission configuration and the main satellite subsystems features has been selected. Recently the joint activity between GAUSS and the Department of Physics of the University "Sapienza" of Rome results in the development of the optical payload to be boarded in the next UNISAT 5 microsatellite. Moreover, due to the recent interest in the development of CUBESAT standard technologies, the proposed payload has been also designed for triple cubesat (3U) dimensions. This paper deals with the payload optical system features, analysing the best trade off between low cost, low burden and high performance. Large FOV and high resolution are required to maximize the number of objects that can be detected and to increase the sensitivity to small debris (< 1 cm size). Copyright ©2010 by the International Astronautical Federation. All rights reserved
- …
