Smartmobes in spaaace: NASA deploys Android nanosats NASA has deployed a couple of CubeSats using off-the-shelf smartphone tech which it hopes will "test out the potential for using a network of small, low-cost satellites to perform complex science missions". The "Nodes" nanosatellites were ejected from the International Space Station on 16 May, along with a further three …
"I always wonder why Android needs to go in to devices like this? What value does it add compared to Debian or something similar?
The mantra of "Android all the things" seems wrong to me."
In this case, it sounds like the hardware is derived from a smartphone so it makes a lot of sense. Flipping the question, what benefit does Debian provide to offset the many hours it would take to get it running on hardware that may not have drivers, etc.? Odds are the boards came with Android and that's an acceptable option so they went with it.
"I always wonder why Android needs to go in to devices like this?"
It says "off-the-shelf smartphone tech", so most likely they are using ARM-SOCs originally designed for smartphones. And Android is what already runs on these devices, any flavour of GNU/Linux would probably have to be ported first (ARM-SOCs don't adhere to the same hardware interface standards that commodity x86-systems do).
as will become apparent with this question, but how do ejecting these things into space not pose a risk of collision?
So if a small particle cracked the outer window recently on the ISS, I guess these are ejected to not risk hitting the ISS or other sats which presumably orbit in a different altitude 'belt'? If this is the case, how do they not enter a decaying orbit and burn up, or is that exactly what's planned? Or is the risk just shrugged off as space is on the large side of big?
Genuine questions.
They are only in low obit, so they will deorbit of their own accord reasonably quickly. They are nudged away from the ISS, and the difference in drag between the two bodies, along with their newly changed orbital path, will mean they stay apart.
The relatively low altitude will ensure that they fall back to produce a small fireball...
https://spaceflightnow.com/2015/07/30/nasa-tracking-cubesats-is-easy-but-many-stay-in-orbit-too-long/
"CubeSats launched inside pressurized cargo vessels and released outside the International Space Station are of little concern to space debris experts. The space station orbits at an altitude of about 260 miles, or 420 kilometers, where aerodynamic drag from the outer wisps of Earth’s atmosphere often brings CubeSats down within months.
For CubeSats sent to higher altitudes, the orbital lifetime is much longer, and most are not equipped with rocket thrusters to move out of the way of other satellites or lower their orbits at end-of-life.
The altitude cutoff for a 25-year lifetime is between 600 and 700 kilometers (373 to 435 miles), according to NASA’s orbital debris report."
Short version:
Ones chucked out of the ISS window will last months, but get 3 times higher and it could be 25 years before they burn up.
Given that, and the predicted rate of deployment they could be numerous, but they are still not a significant hazard due to our ability to track them
I suppose with regards to using Android and smart mobe bits it's a case of already having an OS with a comms stack capable of adding in the appropriate hardware easily to allow the networking.
That being said couldn't you do the same with a RasberryPi ?
On second thoughts maybe not, since the Pi2's tendency to reset itself when exposed to very bright lights. (though I'm happy to be wrong with newer versions).
Finally, I really, really, really hope that the spring has a small flag in red with the words 'bang' written upon it..
"How does a smartphone survive space radiation and SEUs? "
ISS-altitudes are well within the Van-Allen belts and radiation levels are generally pretty low (only slightly higher than experienced in commercial air travel)
This is one reason why ISS experience is good for measuring microgravity endurance but no good for realistic evaluation of the radiation environment that would be experienced on a Mars trip.
Earth's magnetosphere provides a _lot_ of protection against the worst that's out there.
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