Page 33 - EngineerIT January 2022

AMATEUR RADIO AND SPACE

radiation. Satellites are subject to
radiation associated with space
weather events and are affected by
radiation events in several ways,
which can lead to early termination
of their usefulness. On Wednesday
14 September 2011, data concerning
the satellite’s primary function was
received for the last time.
The SumbandilaSat mission not
only re-established South Africa as a
space-faring nation with an in-orbit
small technology demonstrator,
but also fostered human capital
development. The programme allowed
for the training of nine new trainee
engineers of colour (four of whom
were female) and broadened the
experience of 78 other engineers. On
the academic front, the SumbandilaSat
Left: Mosibudi Mangena, Minister of Science and Technology, prior to the SumbandilaSat send-off to programme produced 18 Masters and
Russia, with Hans van de Groenendaal, president of AMSAT SA on the right. two PhD students in engineering at
Stellenbosch University.
AMSAT SA payload successfully tested Dr Val Munsami, CEO of the South
During the morning of Sunday 18 October 2009, ground control activated the AMSATSA African National Space Agency (SANSA)
voice beacon on 435.350 MHz and the transponder with an uplink on 145,880 and downlink said the SumbandilaSat mission has
on 435,350 MHz; during the first evening pass over South Africa, radio amateurs made their demonstrated South Africa’s capability
first contacts through the satellite. in space engineering and has paved
On 21 October, SumbandilaSat was also given its OSCAR number, SO – 67. the way for more satellite missions as
While SumbandilaSat carried two transponders, only the one equipped with the part of the space infrastructure hub
amateur radio interface operated successfully; this had negative implications for South (SIH) currently in development. The SIH
African radio amateurs as the science payload was given preference while orbiting over will see a suite of different classes of
South Africa, with little time given to local amateur radio operation. The rest of the world’s satellites being launched in the coming
radio amateurs had a blast with SumbandilaSat’s transponder available on many orbits, years, drawing on the heritage created
putting SA’s satellite capability on the map. through the SumbandilaSat mission.
SumbandilaSat took a total of 1 128 high resolution, usable images. It was SumbandilaSat reached the end of its
unfortunately launched right at the start of the 24th solar cycle when the sun became life and deorbited on Friday 10 December
more active and therefore was exposed to ever increasing levels of adverse space 2021, and burned up in the atmosphere. n

Prior to SUNSAT there was another satellite project called GreenSat.
It was an attempt to develop a South African earth observation satellite.
The project was originally started in 1985 as a military reconnaissance
satellite to be launched on the indigenous RSA-3 rocket, but in 1991 was
changed to the civilian Greensat.

Greensat would have been about 2,3 m high, with a mass of 330 kg and
would have carried panchromatic and multi-spectral cameras.
The resolution would have been at 2.5 m for the high resolution camera.
The baselined launch vehicle was the Russian Start-1 rocket as the
RSA-3 was cancelled. Although engineering models had been built, the
project was cancelled in 1994 due to lack of funds. Credit Gunter’s Space Page

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