A Novel Approach for a Low-Cost Deployable Antenna

The Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) has designed, built, and fully qualified a low cost, low Passive Intermodulation (PIM) 12-foot (3.66-m) diameter deployable ultra high frequency (UHF) antenna for the Tacsat-4 program. The design utilized novel approaches in reflector material and capacitive coupling techniques. This paper discusses major design trades, unique design characteristics, and lessons learned from the development of the Tacsat 4 deployable antenna. This antenna development was sponsored by the Office of Naval Research

Comparative Characterization of Two Nearshore Rocky Reef Areas: A high-use recreational fishing reef vs. an unfished reef

This project has provided the ODFW Marine Habitat Project with a unique opportunity to make a comparative examination of the habitats and fish communities of a heavily fished reef off of Siletz Bay, and a nearly unfished reef off Cape Perpetua. There are over 17,000 angler trips for groundfish out of Depoe Bay annually, many choosing to fish Siletz Reef. In addition, numerous whale watching and sightseeing charter vessels operate in the vicinity of the reef. Cape Perpetua Reef consists of isolated patches of rock, and is too far from Newport (the nearest port) to receive much fishing effort. This examination of the influences of fishing pressure in nearshore rocky habitat complements, and is embedded in, a broader effort to understand the distribution and character of Oregon’s nearshore rocky reefs, and the species that are dependent upon them for habitat. The ODFW Marine Habitat Project has spent the last eight years working in cooperation with scientists and other resource agencies to develop methods for classifying and mapping nearshore rocky reefs habitats off Oregon. Because nearshore reefs are in state waters, Oregon is responsible for managing these living resources and habitats to sustain their long-term use and productivity. To date, eight reefs have been surveyed and mapped with sidescan and/or multibeam bathymetry at a resolution indicative of fish habitat. ODFW has also been developing non-extractive fish survey techniques to describe fish-habitat associations and estimate fish abundance at the habitat and reef scale. The importance of habitat to reef species cannot be over-stated and is now widely accepted in the scientific community and is the focus of major research efforts in other Pacific coastal states. Better understanding of the degree to which harvest influences relative and absolute abundance, combined with species-habitat relationships, is essential for resource managers to exercise their stewardship responsibilities to protect 5 essential habitat, develop population indices for species at risk, and maintain healthy and productive ecological systems

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TacSat-4 Mission and the Implementation of Bus Standards

This paper provides an overview of the TacSat-4 mission with a focus on the COMMx payload. It discusses the lessons-learned to date and the challenges of building a payload to fly on the prototype spacecraft Bus built to the ORS Phase III Bus standards. Each TacSat experiment tests key elements of an operational system by taking frequent tangible steps to spiral capability and receive operational feedback, while moving toward Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) acquisitions. The TacSat-4 experiment’s mission was selected by a Joint panel. Tacsat-4 has several ORS system level objective including using a prototype bus to mature spacecraft bus standards for acquisition and to fly in a “low” highly elliptical orbit, enabling a new set of ORS missions that require dwell, such as communications. TacSat-4 provides a Communications-on-the-Move and Data-Exfiltration payload. Building a TacSat that operates in a high radiation, highly elliptical orbit is quite challenging for the low cost class and short schedules that TacSats must support. The COMMx payload is currently undergoing system level environmental testing. The ORS Bus Standards flight prototype is complete and ready for integration with the payload. Space vehicle integration and test will be performed from August to October 2008 with launch scheduled for September 2009

TacSat-4 Early Flight Operations Including Lessons From Integration, Test, And Launch Processing

TacSat-4 is an experimental Ultra High Frequency (UHF) communications satellite that launched on a Minotaur IV+ from Kodiak, Alaska on September 27, 2011. The spacecraft and ground capabilities are briefly described for context. The integration, testing, launch processing, early flight operations, and initial end user results are then discussed. Unique approaches and lessons learned are highlighted. For example, the “launch powered off” approach used to test new Operationally Responsive Space (ORS) bus standards worked particularly well, and had several benefits during launch processing. The ORS Office is leading the Joint Military Utility Assessment of the TacSat-4 mission