Satellite System Description

The beginnings of JAS grew out of the satellite area because there was a need to more effectively approach building satellite payloads to reduce NRE and REC, reduce size, weight and power (SWaP), and respond quickly to national needs for mission applications. JAS Toolbox 1.0 is focused on satellite because of this early development. Future versions of the JAS Toolbox will intentionally include other system applications and the considerations that must be accounted for in those other domains.

The space environment is unique in that the following are design considerations that do not necessarily fall into any other domain: launch environment, radiation environment, SWaP considerations, and vacuum environment. To address these unique satellite-related considerations, the Electrical Specification, Mechanical Specification, and Environmental Specification are included in the JAS Toolbox to be used as reference guidelines for the satellite based-system.

Eventually, the JAS Toolbox will evolve to include all of the known domains of space, land, air, and sea. Satellite systems fit into the domain of “space,” and depending on your perspective, satellite can also possibly span even into the “land” domain due to the need for a downlink and ground station capability. In other words, satellite systems can span both space and land because in addition to the flight segment, there is always a ground segment that become part of the system.