bookbashuk Chapter 332 Designing a Satellite
Chapter 332 Designing a Satellite
Wang Li's eyes lit up. "Great! This way we can fully demonstrate the advanced nature and reliability of the system."
Time passed by, but the enthusiasm in the institute did not diminish at all. Li Yang came to the last group - the satellite navigation system group.
"This may be our most challenging project," Li Yang said seriously, "We want to demonstrate our independently developed navigation satellite system, which has centimeter-level accuracy."
Zhang Peng, a navigation system expert, was a little confused. "Engineer Li, we don't have a complete satellite constellation yet. How can we demonstrate the system's performance?"
Li Yang said confidently, "We can do a simulation demonstration. Use a computer to simulate a complete satellite constellation, and then use the atomic clock and signal processing technology we have developed to show how the system can achieve centimeter-level positioning."
"We also want to highlight what makes this system unique. For example, how our signal structure is designed to be resistant to interference and how we achieve compatibility with other global navigation systems," he added.
Zhang Peng suddenly realized, "I understand! We can prepare some demonstrations of application scenarios, such as precise positioning in complex urban environments, or centimeter-level navigation for precision agriculture."
Li Yang nodded approvingly. "That's right. We need to let the leaders see that this is not just a navigation system, but a strategic project that can promote the development of the entire national economy."
In this way, the entire institute stayed up all night. Everyone devoted themselves to the work and worked towards the same goal. As the east turned white, amazing models and demonstration systems gradually took shape.
Li Yang stood in the hall of the institute and looked around. He saw the multi-spectral imaging model made by the optical system team. The colorful light passed through the precise optical components and formed a clear image on the screen. The silicon carbide mirror material of the satellite platform team was undergoing heat resistance testing, and the infrared camera showed its excellent thermal stability in real time.
The fiber optic gyroscope model of the attitude control system is undergoing a precision comparison experiment, and the amazingly accurate angle changes are clearly displayed on the screen. The ion thruster of the propulsion system team produces a light blue ion beam in the vacuum chamber, and the numbers on the precision balance are changing slowly and steadily.
The Ka-band high-throughput demonstration of the communication system is underway, with hundreds of simulated communication channels operating simultaneously, maintaining stable signal strength even in simulated rainfall. The navigation system team's simulated constellation runs on a large screen, demonstrating centimeter-level positioning accuracy in real time.
Li Yang's eyes sparkled with tears of pride. He knew that in this night, they not only made some models and demonstration systems, but also concentrated Yan Country's satellite technology for the next ten years in this room.
"Comrades," Li Yang said loudly, his voice trembling with excitement, "look at what we have created! This is not just some models and demonstrations, this is the future of our country's space industry! I am proud of you and proud of our team!"
……
Li Yang stood in the hall of the research institute, looked around, and felt a surge of pride in his heart.
However, he quickly suppressed this emotion because he knew that the real challenge had just begun.
"Comrades," Li Yang cleared his throat, attracting everyone's attention, "We have completed the demonstration model, but now, it's time to start the real satellite manufacturing."
As soon as the words fell, the whole hall fell silent.
The engineers exchanged nervous and excited glances. They all knew that the next work would be an unprecedented challenge.
Li Yang walked towards a huge workbench covered with various drawings and parts.
He picked up what looked like a metal disc and held it up in front of the group.
"This is one of the core components of our satellite - the motherboard of the onboard computer," Li Yang explained, his eyes twinkling with wisdom. "It may look simple, but making it is an extremely complex process."
He pointed to the densely packed circuits on the motherboard and continued, "We need to integrate tens of thousands of transistors and circuits in this palm-sized area. The position of each component must be accurate to the micron level. Any slight deviation may cause the entire system to collapse."
The engineers around him held their breath and listened carefully. Li Yang's words contained advanced technology that they had never encountered before.
"Moreover," Li Yang added, frowning, "this motherboard must be able to work properly in the extreme environment of space. We have to face not only the vacuum environment, but also the continuous radiation bombardment and drastic temperature changes."
A young engineer couldn't help but ask: "Mr. Li, in such an environment, ordinary electronic components simply can't work properly, right?"
Li Yang nodded, a mysterious smile on his face: "Yes, this is one of the biggest challenges we face. But I have a solution."
He pulled a small bottle from his pocket, which contained a light blue liquid. "This is a special coating material," Li Yang explained, "We can apply it to the circuit board to form a protective film that is only a few microns thick. This film can not only resist radiation, but also remain stable when the temperature changes drastically."
The engineers whispered to each other in surprise; they had never heard of this magical material.
Li Yang continued: "But this layer of protection alone is not enough. We also need to design the entire circuit structure, using redundancy and fault tolerance technology. In this way, even if part of the circuit is damaged by cosmic rays, the whole system can still operate normally."
He picked up a pen and quickly drew a complex circuit diagram on the whiteboard next to him. "Look, we can divide the critical circuits into multiple groups, each with independent power supply and data transmission channels. When one group fails, the system can automatically switch to the backup circuit."
There was a gleam of amazement in the engineers' eyes. They realized that Li Yang was not only solving problems, but also leading them into a whole new field of technology.
In the following days, the institute became a huge machine that ran 24 hours a day.
Everyone devotes themselves to every aspect of satellite manufacturing.
……
In the optical system laboratory, Li Yang is leading a group of engineers to debug a high-resolution camera.
"Our goal is to achieve a resolution of 0.5 meters," Li Yang said as he adjusted the lens. "This means that our satellite can clearly see the details of a small car on the ground from a 500-kilometer space orbit."
He carefully installed a piece of special optical glass into the camera's lens assembly. "This is a new type of low-dispersion glass," Li Yang explained, "It can greatly reduce chromatic aberration and improve image clarity. However, processing this glass is an extremely difficult process."
Li Yang recalled the process of processing the glass. It was a long and arduous process that needed to be carried out in a completely dust-free environment. The workers wore heavy protective clothing and worked non-stop for 72 hours before they finally polished the glass to the required precision.
"But having a good lens is not enough," Li Yang continued. "We also need an ultra-high-sensitivity image sensor."
He carefully took out a fingernail-sized chip from an anti-static box. "This is the back-illuminated CMOS sensor we independently developed," Li Yang said with pride in his eyes. "Its sensitivity is 10 times higher than that of ordinary sensors, and it can capture clear images even in extremely low light conditions."
Just then, an engineer came running over with an anxious look on his face: "Mr. Li, we found a problem during the test. In the simulated space environment, the dark current of the sensor is much higher than expected."
Li Yang frowned and fell into deep thought.
Dark current is a key parameter in image sensors, which directly affects the image quality.
If the dark current is too high, a large amount of noise will be generated, seriously reducing the clarity of the image.
"I understand," Li Yang said, with a determined gleam in his eyes. "We need to redesign the pixel structure of the sensor."
He picked up a pen and quickly drew a new pixel structure diagram on the paper.
"We can add an isolation trench around each pixel, which can greatly reduce the generation of dark current. At the same time, we can also introduce a new readout circuit to further reduce noise."
The engineers gathered around Li Yang, carefully studying the new design.
They all knew that this would mean remaking the sensor, which would be a time-consuming and expensive process.
However, no one raised any objections because they all understood that only in this way could the success of the satellite be ensured.
……
At the same time, in the satellite structure laboratory, another group of engineers were carrying out the same arduous work.
"Our satellites must be both light and strong," Li Yang told a group of structural engineers. "Every kilogram of weight added means more fuel consumption. However, if the structure is not strong enough, the satellite may be torn apart by the huge vibrations and accelerations during launch."
"This is our solution - carbon fiber composite material," he said, pointing to a piece of honeycomb material in front of him. "It's stronger than steel and only a quarter of the weight."
Li Yang picked up a carbon fiber plate and gently bent it. Despite his best efforts, the plate did not budge. "See?" he said with a smile, "This is the 'skeleton' of our satellite."
However, using this new material also brings new challenges. An experienced engineer raised a question: "Mr. Li, the thermal expansion coefficient of carbon fiber is completely different from that of metal. How can we ensure that there will be no problems in the connection between different materials in the space environment?"
Li Yang nodded, appreciating this astute observation. "This is indeed a big problem," he said. "We need to design a special connection structure."
He walked over to the blueprint and began to draw a complex connection device. "We can use this elastic connector. It can automatically adjust its position when different materials expand and contract to ensure the stability of the overall structure."
The engineers gathered around the drawings, carefully studying this innovative design.
……
While the institute was devoting all its efforts to the development of satellites, another equally important project was also being carried out in full swing - the development of rockets.