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We are Texas A&M SEDS Solar Sail (TAMU SSS)—a student-led project under the Texas A&M chapter of SEDS—and we are building a satellite that will sail in space using nothing but sunlight.
While this may sound sci-fi, solar sailing is a technology that has already been successfully demonstrated several times in space. It is not mature enough yet for widespread use, but we at TAMU SSS aim to help change that. As a student project, we believe that we are uniquely positioned to take risks and develop bold innovations that will push forward the field of solar sailing and realize its potential for applications such as Earth observation, orbital debris mitigation, interplanetary missions, and more.
To that end, we completed a full year of in-depth research and expert outreach before deciding to pursue a novel sail concept utilizing shape memory alloy (SMA) deployment, which can produce lighter, more efficient, and more reliable solar sails. Since then, we have been conducting R&D on our concept and working towards the launch of Solaris I: a small-scale solar sail mission which will deploy from the ISS and demonstrate our novel SMA deployment technology.
If you are a fellow student passionate about what we are working on - please consider applying to join the team!
If you are an industry professional/researcher who would like the opportunity to hear more about our project and provide some feedback - please reach out!
More information can be found below for those interested!
THE TEAM
THE TEAM
TAMU SSS is split into the following 3 subteams:
Mission Design - Conducting mission analysis for the overall solar sail mission and designing the solar sail/CubeSat system using a rigorous systems engineering approach
R&D - Devising different strategies for SMA (Shape Memory Alloy) deployment of solar sails and iterate on designs using analysis & experimental methods
Outreach - Handling social media, community outreach, design competitions, and funding needs. Members will also have the option to shadow the technical subteams and help with their work
Members
R&D - Christian Coffey (Lead), Ansh Panchal, Francis La, Kalyan Vivekanandan, Sebastian Chinchilla, Rachel Kwak, Patrick Chao, Abhiram Kanamariapudi, Caleb Chambers, Mitchell Gorodetsky, Liam Callahan, Veronica O'Neill, Danial Akhtar, McKenna Johnson, Megan Cole
Mission Design - Owen Krackau (Lead), Kian Rowshan, Nikita Srinivas, Gavin Regier, Ram Pillai, Mateo Rodriguez, Guitar Pisitkun, Vedant Lal, Brady Pierce, Benjamin Lardner, Praharshini Nernuru
Outreach - Anthony Zambrano (Lead), Lila Gaxiola, Sameera Bhivare, Owen Shiels, Gonzalo Garcia Pena, Isobela Guevara, Iliana Ensley, Greta Petri, Rajvi Patel, Sudhanva Vasista, Momin Hassan
Project Manager - Adam Zheng
Faculty Advisor
Dr. Daniel Selva - Associate Professor, Aerospace Engineering
JOIN US
JOIN US
Applications are closed. Please check back next semester!
SELECTION PROCESS
SELECTION PROCESS
Round 1: Applications
Simply go to the application form, fill it out, and submit!
Round 2: Interviews
SSS Interviews will follow a traditional interview format, consisting primarily of behavioral questions.
SUPPORT US
SUPPORT US
If you would like to hear more about our project, provide expert feedback, or support us in any other way, please reach out to us at tamu.seds.solarsail@gmail.com!
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