ENT 190 INTRODUCTION TO SPACE TECHNOLOGY 3 Credits

Satellite technology, reliability, and testing. Includes propulsion and launch systems, spacecraft structures, power systems, telemetry, tracking, and command/control communication operations. Taught by expert NASA instructors from the Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, MD.

3 class hr/wk. Prerequisite: MAT 104, completed or concurrent, or permission of department chair.

Evening Course: One evening per week, 6-9 PM for 15 weeks.

REGISTRATION: Main campus – Bladen Hall, (301) 322-0819, 0998. You must be officially admitted to PGCC prior to course registration. Consult college catalog and semester schedule of classes for full enrollment details, class schedule, and costs.

The purpose of this course is to give an overview of the space technology career field and how the technology is applied at GSFC in particular. This course is intended to be taken in the freshman year and is required in all Space Technology A.A.S. degree options. The mathematical content of the course will be kept to a basic college algebraic level. The course will emphasize satellite technology. Contact Don Wood for more information 301-286-3726, Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC).

Satellite-Launch vehicle & Propulsion System Overview

· Satellite building blocks

· Basic orbit theory

· Orbit maintenance

· Launcher performance (payload capabilities)

Satellite Power Systems

· Solar arrays, storage cells & batteries, power conditioning & Control

Spacecraft Environment and Remote Sensing Applications

Telemetry, Tracking, Command and Communication Systems

· Sensors, basic link calculations (freq. power, temp. BW, antenna gain)

· Operations (ground, space). Tele-command (detection, decoding, routing)

· Satellite tracking, navigation principles.

Satellite Propulsion

· Basic thruster and propellant considerations. Transducers that monitor.

· Spacecraft basic testing and specifications

Spacecraft Systems, Testing and Reliability Considerations

· Thermal control & Testing (thermal vacuum)

· Spacecraft basic testing and specifications

· Test facilities: clean rooms, test facilities including EMI

TEXTBOOK: Intro to Space Sciences and Spacecraft Applications, by Campbell & McCandless

COURSE SYLLABUS 

Week 1             Orientation and course overview. What is a career in the space industry all about.

Week 2             Satellites and launch vehicles. Building blocks used. Characteristics and function.

Week 3             Spacecraft structures and intro to power systems onboard satellites

Week 4             Power systems (continued). Intro to attitude control systems

Week 5             Attitude control (continued). Review of weeks 1- 5

Week 6             Examination

Week 7             Telemetry, tracking, command and communication systems

Week 8             Propulsion systems. Thermal controls.

Week 9             Spacecraft testing

Week 10           Field trip to GSFC facilities (view testing underway and operations)

Week 11           Reliability issues and design procedures

Week 12           Examination

Week 13           Satellite communications and operations. Ground support.

Week 14           Spacecraft applications- remote sensing

Week 15           Final Examination (comprehensive)

COURSE PREREQUISITES:

MAT 134  completed or concurrent

EVALUATION OF STUDENT PERFORMANCE: Grading criteria:

Examinations: 3 Exams total weight is 60%

Quizzes: Total of all quizzes weight is 20%

Class attendance and participation: 10%

Homework and project: 10%

ENT 190- Expected course Outcomes:

NASA GODDARD/PGCC SPACE TECHNOLOGY INSTITUTE SPACE ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY Degree Program

The Space Engineering Technology program provides students with the range of skills and information needed for successful employment at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and its associated contractors (GCA). The NASA Goddard/PGCC Space Technology Institute was founded in 1991 under the leadership of Sen. Barbara Mikulski as an educational partnership between the NASA GSFC, the GCA members, and the Prince George’s Community College (PGCC) Department of Engineering Technology. The Space Engineering Technology curriculum was then developed, and selected NASA facilities and expert NASA instructors were selected to support the Institute. The NASA high-technology training facility in Lanham, MD and the GSFC campus in Greenbelt, MD are utilized by the Institute to support the program. This affords the student truly unique access to state-of-the-art facilities and instruction. The curriculum includes specifically NASA-related courses including: high-reliability soldering /fabrication, fiber optics, satellite communications, space technology/spacecraft operations, electronics, and computer specialty courses.

An important curriculum option is the Quality Science program. The Quality Science program is tailored toward quality control, assurance, and management (including the ISO standards). The Quality Assurance program is compatible with suggested American Society for Quality (ASQ) training leading to CQT, CQE, CQA, CQM, CSQE, and CRE certifications. The individual courses cover the recommended ASQ “body of knowledge” and will help anyone working in the quality discipline at any business or governmental agency.

The Space Engineering Technology program has two goals. The first is to provide students with the specialized skills needed to attain entry-level employment in the space technology field. The second goal is to upgrade and enrich the skills of existing Goddard and Goddard contractor employees. Many of the courses within the program are so specialized that they are not offered by any other local college. Other courses are more conventional ones that have been modified only slightly to provide them with a space perspective.

SPACE ENGINEERING TECHNOLOGY Degree Requirements

Required Courses: See college catalog for details

ENT ENT 190 Introduction to Space Technology (Req’d all options)

(22 Credits) ENT 192 Quality Engineering/Management (Req’d all options)

ENT 171/ ENT 172/ ENT 178/ ENT 180/ ENT 185

ENT electives: ENT 220 High-Reliability Soldering/Fabrication, Surface Mount Tech., Fiber Optics

(11 Credits) ENT 273 Electronic Communications

ENT 256/ ENT 281/ ENT 296-298

Programming elective: CIS 111 or ENT 177

(3- 4 Credits)

General Education EGL 101/ EGL 102D/ SPH 161/ PHY 157 and Lab Science elective/ Gen. Educ. elective

(28- 29 Credits) MAT 134 (or higher)/ Social Science Elective/ Cultural Diversity/ PED or HLT/

Minimum required for the A.A.S. degree ……..… 64 Credits

Recommended first semester courses: ENT 171, ENT 190 and an Appropriate math course.