Scott Palo News

NSF spotlight on CU �鶹ӰԺ CubeSat project

Jeff Zehnder — Fri, 25 Oct 2024 19:08:57 +0000

NSF spotlight on CU �鶹ӰԺ CubeSat project Jeff Zehnder Fri, 10/25/2024 - 13:08

The National Science Foundation is highlighting the SWARM-EX CubeSats.

The three cube satellite project, formally titled Space Weather Atmospheric Reconfigurable Multiscale Experiment (SWARM-EX), is an initiative of six universities, led by the �鶹ӰԺ.

"The thermosphere and ionosphere system — the start of what we often think of as 'outer space' — is a highly variable and complex region of our atmosphere contributing to space weather," said Scott Palo, a professor in Smead Aerospace and principal investigator for SWARM-EX.

Read the full article at NSF...

The National Science Foundation is highlighting the SWARM-EX CubeSats. The three cube satellite project, formally titled Space Weather Atmospheric Reconfigurable...

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NASA Spotlight on CU �鶹ӰԺ CubeSat Van Allen Belt research

Jeff Zehnder — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 18:59:33 +0000

NASA Spotlight on CU �鶹ӰԺ CubeSat Van Allen Belt research Jeff Zehnder Tue, 09/17/2024 - 12:59

An instrument aboard the CIRBE CubeSat is using advanced detection techniques and leveraging an orbit with specific characteristics to increase our understanding of the Van Allen belts

Designed and built by Smead Aerospace and the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) at the �鶹ӰԺ, CIRBE launched in 2023 and is conducting sophisticated, fine-grain measurements of the Van Allen radiation belts. CIRBE is managed by Professors Xinlin Li and Scott Palo.

NASA is highlighting the research in a new article on an intense magnetic storm in May 2024.

Read the full article at NASA.gov...

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CU �鶹ӰԺ wins major Air Force grant to track objects orbiting the moon

Anonymous — Mon, 21 Aug 2023 15:25:23 +0000

CU �鶹ӰԺ wins major Air Force grant to track objects orbiting the moon Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 08/21/2023 - 09:25

Jeff Zehnder

We want to advance civil space traffic management and planetary defense for asteroids."

The �鶹ӰԺ is leading a major Air Force project to track objects orbiting near the moon.

The Air Force Research Laboratory is awarding a Space University Research Initiative worth up to $5 million over five years to the multi-university CU �鶹ӰԺ-led team. Also collaborating on the research are Texas A&M University, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and L3Harris Technologies.

The goal is to improve space domain awareness in high Earth orbits – above geosynchronous – and in the vicinity of the moon, according to Marcus Holzinger, an associate professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences and the principal investigator for the grant.

“We want to advance civil space traffic management and planetary defense for asteroids, and assist the U.S. Space Force with space tracking,” Holzinger said. “This is truly a dual use that improves timeliness and the quality of decisions as a benefit to humanity writ large.”

An additional CU �鶹ӰԺ partner on the project is the university’s Center for National Security Initiatives. NSI will facilitate sponsor events and engagement, monitor cost-performance objectives, and identify adjacent defense opportunities to further advance the research and expand its national security footprint.

The project presents unique and complex challenges for all members of the team, said Zach Sunberg, an assistant professor in Smead Aerospace who is also a team member.

“Space is not an intuitive domain. We will need to use innovative algorithms, computational techniques, and experimental research to make this happen. This really brings together experts in areas ranging from orbital dynamics, to human computer interaction, to high tech sensors,” Sunberg said.

NASA and the Air Force currently maintain systems to track asteroids and man-made objects in Low Earth Orbit for military readiness and to prevent collisions of satellites but have more limited capabilities for monitoring objects around the moon.

Up until very recently, that has not been a problem as hardly any missions orbited the moon. The recent explosion of commercial and government projects at higher orbits makes the current system unsustainable. Unfortunately, existing tracking systems cannot be easily adapted for the purpose.

“The current systems are all legacy technology. The algorithms that underpin them depend on Keplerian physics, two-body motion – the Earth and one other body. The region we’re talking about is heavily affected by the gravity of the moon and the sun as well, and the dynamics we use to predict movement begin to fail,” Holzinger said.

The grant will include fundamental and applied research joining telescopes, sensor technology, and artificial intelligence to detect, characterize, and track spacefaring objects in high orbits to improve decision making for humans on the ground.

“We need to know is this a spacecraft or a natural object and where is it going,” Holzinger said. “This improves safety for civilian and commercial space flights and can help us spot asteroids that may be on a collision course with Earth.”

Sunberg said the project has real potential for positive, long-lasting impacts.

“Humanity has the potential to harness the space around the Earth and the moon for a variety of benefits. However, as this area becomes increasingly occupied with satellites controlled by users with different goals, it is more and more important to maintain our situational awareness so it is a safe and useful environment for all. This work will develop technologies critical to that goal,” Sunberg said.

Additional researchers on the grant include Scott Palo at CU �鶹ӰԺ; Terry Alfriend, Kyle DeMars, and John Junkins of Texas A&M University; and Karen Feigh of Georgia Tech.

The �鶹ӰԺ is leading a major Air Force project to track objects orbiting near the moon. The Air Force Research Laboratory is awarding a Space University Research Initiative worth up to $5 million over five years to the...

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Successful launch for the CIRBE CubeSat

Anonymous — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 15:11:40 +0000

Successful launch for the CIRBE CubeSat Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 04/26/2023 - 09:11

CIRBE being successfully deployed from the Transport-7 SpaceX Falcon9 rocket.

The CIRBE CubeSat is live from space after a successful launch and deployment.

CIRBE, the Colorado Inner Radiation Belt Experiment nano satellite, is a joint project of the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics and the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences.

Led by Profs. Xinlin Li and Scott Palo, CIRBE was launched into a sun synchronous orbit with local time ascending node at 10:30 AM (~97.4 deg inclination and ~500 km) on April 15 by a SpaceX Falcon 9 Rocket.

Communications with the spacecraft were established during its first path over �鶹ӰԺ, and both spacecraft and the instrument aboard are in normal working condition. The instrument was first turned on three days after launch. Science data were first downloaded via S-band and successfully decoded on April 20. The operations team are finishing the commissioning phase, and expect to move into normal science mode this week.

More than CU �鶹ӰԺ 20 aerospace graduate and undergraduate students are directly involved with CIRBE.

The CIRBE bus was built by Blue Canyon Technologies. Its science payload is REPTile-2 (Relativistic Electron and Proton Telescope integrated little experiment -2) with a mission to gain a better understanding of the formation of inner radiation belt electrons as well as determine where these particles come from and how they behave.

REPTile-2 is an advanced version of REPTile, which first flew on CSSWE, the Colorado Student Space Weather Experiment CubeSat. CSSWE was the first joint CubeSat of LASP and Smead Aerospace. It was also led by Li and Palo and operated in space for over two years in space from 2012-2014.

Find out more about CIRBE at LASP

CIRBE after being successfully integrated into the CubeSat dispenser.

The CIRBE CubeSat is live from space after a successful launch and deployment. CIRBE, the Colorado Inner Radiation Belt Experiment nano satellite, is a joint project of the Laboratory for Atmospheric...

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Palo elected an AIAA fellow

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Feb 2023 16:15:31 +0000

Palo elected an AIAA fellow Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 02/15/2023 - 09:15

Jeff Zehnder

Professor Scott Palo has been elected a fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).

Palo is the Charles Victor Schelke Endowed Professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences and a former associate dean for research in the College of Engineering and Applied Science.

Palo has a multifaceted research portfolio with foci on the design, construction, and deployment of small satellites; the development of meteor radar systems to study the upper atmosphere; and understanding large-scale atmospheric dynamics in the near earth space environment.

Much of his scientific work has focused on the Arctic and Antarctic regions, and he has earned the United States Antarctic Service Medal for his work meteor radar work in Antarctica over the past 20 years..

Palo has been a member of the aerospace faculty at the �鶹ӰԺ since 2001.

In addition to his work at the university, Palo has served on the board of directors of the Colorado Space Business Roundtable and has consulted for Blue Canyon Technologies, which designs, builds, tests, launches and operates small satellites. These experiences led Palo to found Blue Cubed Communications LLC which is developing small satellite laser communication systems.

Palo has a strong reputation for his work in ground-based observing networks, remote sensing, and meteor radar design. His efforts have advanced small satellites as a viable means to expand our understanding of near-Earth space and beyond.

He earned his undergraduate degree in electrical and computer engineering at Clarkson University and completed his master’s and PhD in electrical engineering at CU �鶹ӰԺ.

Palo will be officially inducted as an AIAA Fellow at a special association dinner on Wednesday, May 17, in Arlington, Virginia.

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CU �鶹ӰԺ lands Air Force grant to design new CubeSat for Earth orbit

Anonymous — Tue, 14 Dec 2021 18:00:54 +0000

CU �鶹ӰԺ lands Air Force grant to design new CubeSat for Earth orbit Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 12/14/2021 - 11:00

Jeff Zehnder

Scott Palo with the QB-50 CubeSat, which launched in 2017.

Scott Palo wants to send RALPHIE to space.

RALPHIE the satellite, that is. The U.S. Air Force is providing support to help make it happen.

Palo, a professor of aerospace engineering sciences at the �鶹ӰԺ, has earned an Air Force Research Laboratory University Nanosatellite Program (UNP) grant to design RALPHIE, named for CU �鶹ӰԺ’s buffalo mascot. The acronym stands for “Radio And Laser PatH agnostIc communications Experiment.”

Advancing Communication

RALPHIE will be a CubeSat, a “nano” satellite, approximately the size of a large shoebox. It is being designed to demonstrate path diagnostic communications technology in space, which would allow satellite communications to be automated. Currently most transmissions between satellites and the ground are scheduled manually, creating bottlenecks and hassles for operators.

“It gets kind of painful,” Palo said. “Imagine with your cell phone if you had to worry about which tower you were connected to. That’s how satellite communications are. We want to be able to manage those communications in an autonomous way.”

Technology Innovations

The two-year grant is for the initial design of the satellite. The team will then submit their work for additional funding to build the spacecraft as part of the UNP Flight Competition Review in 2024. Palo is hopeful the technology will prove successful and demonstrate new possibilities for full-size satellites.

“Large spacecraft cost hundreds of millions of dollars and tend to have a long life cycle and a risk adverse posture,” Palo said. “People don’t really want to innovate with them; they want to know something will work. CubeSats cost much less, they encourage innovation. You should be pushing the envelope on CubeSats so we can learn how to do new things in space.”

Nearly Two Dozen CubeSats

RALPHIE is just the latest in a line of nearly two dozen CubeSats designed and built on the CU �鶹ӰԺ campus. With a smaller size and much lower price tags, CubeSats offer students the ability to have a leading role in their design, construction and operation.

“I’m mentoring the CubeSat teams, but strong student leaders are the secret sauce,” Palo said.

In addition to RALPHIE, Palo is principal investigator on three other upcoming CubeSats: MAXWELL, CU-E3, and SWARM-EX, with students heavily involved in each project.

SWARM-EX will investigate the relationship between charged particles and neutral particles in the thermosphere. A major, six-university partnership, the project recently completed a critical design review with all of the academic partners, external reviewers and the National Science Foundation, which is providing funding.

“SWARM-EX is rocking and rolling,” Palo said. “The critical design review was an all-day event on November 19 and students led the presentation. It went exceptionally well. We got very positive feedback.”

The SWARM-EX project has completed the design phase and is moving into build and test, with launch not expected until late 2023.

CU-E3 will advance deep space communication techniques in heliocentric orbit. It had been aiming for a launch on Artemis 1, NASA’s February 2022 high profile orbital moon mission, but experienced a hardware failure over the summer that has delayed completion.

Although Palo is disappointed with the setback on CU-E3, problem solving is a critical part of an engineering education.

“There is nothing that trains an engineer like having to build and test hardware,” Palo said. “Where the rubber hits the road is when you have to take a design and solve all the problems. The students mature significantly from that.”

The MAXWELL CubeSat is closest to completion, with launch expected late next year. It aims to test high rate communications in deep space.

“We’re working to get the spacecraft integrated and tested,” Palo said. “We’re doing testing of subsystems right now. If anyone is interested, we’re always looking to meet new students to join our projects. Our graduates come out of CU �鶹ӰԺ with significantly more experience than their peers at other universities from working on these programs.”

Interested in getting involved with a CU �鶹ӰԺ CubeSat? There are openings for students on multiple project teams. Email Scott.Palo@colorado.edu for more information.

Scott Palo wants to send RALPHIE to space.

RALPHIE the satellite, that is. The U.S. Air Force is providing support to help make it happen...

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New $25 million research center to study the radio frequency spectrum

Anonymous — Wed, 15 Sep 2021 15:33:35 +0000

New $25 million research center to study the radio frequency spectrum Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 09/15/2021 - 09:33

Researchers at CU �鶹ӰԺ will take part in a $25 million effort to study a natural resource that’s becoming increasingly in demand: the radio frequency spectrum.

The U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) today announced the new initiative, called SpectrumX. It will be led by the University of Notre Dame and will bring together experts from 29 organizations to transform the landscape of spectrum research, education, collaboration and management.

“We’re delighted to be a leading partner in the first NSF Spectrum Innovation Center,” said Terri Fiez, vice chancellor for research and innovation at CU �鶹ӰԺ. “The diverse team of CU �鶹ӰԺ researchers, university and industry partners and federal labs, along with a unique entrepreneurial approach, truly embodies the spirit of collaboration and innovation that have become the hallmark of our research enterprise.”

Scott Palo with a small satellite called a CubeSat. (Credit: College of Engineering and Applied Science)

In the United States and around the world, radio frequencies are allocated to a variety of services such as mobile broadband, broadcasting and navigation (GPS) that are now mainstream and widely used. But the increasing demands of commercial wireless services, especially 5G networks, as well as the greater needs of scientific, satellite and defense applications, among others, require paradigm shifts in management of the radio spectrum and in coordination of research and development around it.

Scott Palo, who is leading CU �鶹ӰԺ’s work with the new center, said that his team is “thrilled” to join other Colorado-based partners in SpectrumX. They include the U.S. National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).

“Radio spectrum is a precious resource which is critical for U.S. national competitiveness,” said Palo, a professor in the Ann and H.J. Smead Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences at CU �鶹ӰԺ. “CU is exceptionally well positioned to make a major impact on this issue through world class research, workforce development and private and public partnerships with a focus on equity, diversity and inclusion.”

NSF has entered into agreements with the NTIA, which regulates government use of the radio spectrum, and the Federal Communications Commission, which regulates non-government use of the spectrum, to help align investments in spectrum research, infrastructure and workforce development with U.S. spectrum regulatory and policy objectives, principles and strategies.

NSF is also developing a broader government working group, and SpectrumX is forming an external advisory board. All of these groups will engage with SpectrumX on a regular basis to enhance strategic planning and translation of center results into practice.

“Given the importance and scale of all of this work, we have a tremendous opportunity to prepare a spectrum workforce of diverse, civic-minded and globally engaged scientists, engineers, economists and policymakers in the field,” said Nick Laneman, director of SpectrumX, co-director of Notre Dame’s Wireless Institute and professor of electrical engineering.

Much of the current workforce is aging, and the field has some had difficulty recruiting top young talent, Laneman said. SpectrumX will address those concerns with a comprehensive education and workforce development program—starting in middle and high school classrooms and extending through undergraduate and graduate studies to prepare students in spectrum innovation, management and economic development.

“Congestion of the radio spectrum is a key challenge for science and for all sectors of society and the economy,” said Jonathan Williams, NSF program officer. “This SpectrumX NSF Spectrum Innovation Center will be a critical national hub for spectrum research and development to help overcome the challenges of interference and radio spectrum scarcity.”

SpectrumX partners are Agnes Scott College, Clemson University, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Morehouse College, Morgan State University, the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, New York University, Norfolk State University, Northwestern University, Olin College of Engineering, South Carolina State University, Spelman College, Stanford University, Texas Tech University, University at Albany, University of California Berkeley, University of California Los Angeles, University of California Santa Cruz, University of Pittsburgh, University of Puerto Rico de Mayaguez, University of Texas at San Antonio, University of the Virgin Islands, University of Virginia, University of the West Indies and Virginia Diodes Inc.

This announcement was adapted from a version published by the University of Notre Dame. Read the original story here.

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CU �鶹ӰԺ joins partnership to pursue NSF Spectrum Innovation Initiative center

Anonymous — Wed, 10 Feb 2021 16:21:43 +0000

CU �鶹ӰԺ joins partnership to pursue NSF Spectrum Innovation Initiative center Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 02/10/2021 - 09:21

CU �鶹ӰԺ may soon be part of large-scale research into the electromagnetic spectrum that could define wireless innovation across everyday life for the next generation.

The university is one of several partners in a new planning grant from the National Science Foundation that may eventually lead to a five-year, $25 million National Center for Wireless Spectrum Research (SII-Center) known as SpectrumX. Under the planning proposal, CU �鶹ӰԺ – led by the College of Engineering and Applied Science – would serve as one of several hubs for research into the electromagnetic spectrum.

Many everyday devices like cell phones and smart home devices such as a Ring doorbells utilize radio spectrum for their operation. Unfortunately this spectrum is a limited resource that is already congested – a problem that will only grow with the development of future applications to enable intelligent transportation systems, widespread drone use, and 5G. The proposed center would catalyze a vibrant community of world-class scientists, engineers, and policy experts with industry and federal partners around this issue and focus on relevant research, innovation, education and workforce development in the field.

CU �鶹ӰԺ’s partners in this proposal include the University of Notre Dame, the University of Virginia, Olin College, University of California Berkeley and Stanford University among many others. Smead Aerospace Engineering Sciences Professor Scott Palo is leading the effort on campus and is part of the college’s Autonomous Systems Interdisciplinary Research Theme. He called the central issue of spectrum limitations a “multifaceted” problem that requires large-scale organization and interdisciplinary research to solve.

“Regulation and planning in this area have lagged behind where the technology is, and we are now seeing an increased number of conflicts emerge,” he said. “The center would allow us to bring experts together to identify both technology and policy solutions that balance the growing commercial uses – which account for billions of dollars of investment – with the equally important scientific needs, which include astronomy and earth science.”

Gathering and reporting accurate measurements of the Earth from satellite observations is a critical use of the radio spectrum, said Professor Al Gasiewski of the Department of Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering. His team develops advanced satellite- and drone-based sensors that utilize the most sensitive radio receivers possible to measure things like temperature, soil moisture, wind and rainfall.

“Our ability to make those kinds of observations helps with accurate weather predictions and improves our understanding of Earth as a whole,” he said. “It’s all dependent on the availability and shared use of the radio spectrum, though, and this center will help inform coexistence requirements and enhance radio receivers for environmental sensing to effectively share spectrum with other uses.”

CU �鶹ӰԺ Team

Scott Palo (AES) – Associate Director
Tanya Ennis (BOLD) – Director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Scott Fox (Venture Partners) – Director of Partnerships and Innovation
Jade Morton (AES)
Keith Gremban (AES)
Dirk Grunwald (CS)
Zoya Popovic (ECEE)
Albin Gasiewski (ECEE)
Taylor Barton (ECEE)
Dale Hatfield (Silicon Flatirons)

BOLD Center Director Tanya Ennis is also heavily involved with the proposal. She said the center would directly address questions of equity, diversity and inclusion. One of the key elements to do that, she said, is a comprehensive plan to understand intercultural competence and self-awareness for all SpectrumX staff and collaborators by assessing individuals, developing action plans for the team, and infusing equity, diversity and inclusion practices into all aspects of the center.

“Some examples of that include influencing policies that impact the use of the spectrum, conducting education and workforce development, and engaging in outreach to marginalized populations,” Ennis said.

CU �鶹ӰԺ is well-positioned in the field of spectrum because of deep expertise among faculty on campus, Palo said. Other specialists on the team include a National Academy member and many IEEE and AIAA senior members and fellows with deep roots in terrestrial wireless networks, satellite sensing and networking, environmental radar sensing, radio astronomy and military spectrum use.

“Here at CU �鶹ӰԺ specifically we also have strong existing partnerships with federal partners in the area such as NIST, NTIA/ITS, NCAR and NOAA that are either working on these problems or are impacted by them,” Palo said. “And when it comes to policy, the Silicon Flatirons Center within the law school is one of the best in the world in this topic.”

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Hussein, Palo win 2020 Lab Venture Challenge

Anonymous — Tue, 24 Nov 2020 19:30:40 +0000

Hussein, Palo win 2020 Lab Venture Challenge Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 11/24/2020 - 12:30

Fourteen university innovators including Smead Aerospace's Mahmoud Hussein and Scott Palo pitched their technologies at Lab Venture Challenge (LVC), a funding competition hosted by Venture Partners at CU �鶹ӰԺ that helps commercially-promising technologies accelerate into impactful business ventures. Judges from the local entrepreneurial ecosystem awarded a record total of 12 grants—up to $125,000 each—for the top physical science, engineering and bioscience innovations demonstrating high commercial potential, a clear path to a compelling market and strong scientific support.

Adapting to a virtual format this year, LVC was split into two categories over two days: Biosciences on Nov. 18 and Physical Sciences & Engineering on Nov. 19. Finalists delivered 8-minute pitches and navigated four minutes of Q&A from a panel of business leaders, entrepreneurs, investors and intellectual property experts.

Watch LVC Day 1: Biosciences Watch LVC Day 2: Physical Sciences/Engineering

“With $1.35 million allocated, this was the largest Lab Venture Challenge to date," said Brynmor Rees, assistant vice chancellor for Research & Innovation and managing director of Venture Partners. "More importantly, we saw incredibly strong pitches, more diversity among the finalists and ventures with high impact potential."

LVC winner Scott Palo, endowed professor of aerospace engineering and CEO of Blue Cubed, and his team are looking to bring their technology—a small, hybrid modular broadband satellite communication system—to market. Current satellites use radio frequency (or RF) systems for communications, but RFs are a fixed resource and bandwidth can be an issue. Optical, or laser communications, have nearly unlimited bandwidth and can address this scarcity problem, but weather can sometimes affect connectivity. Palo's solution combines both RF & optical systems, which provide guaranteed communication links in all-weather conditions while enabling faster rates using its patented cobalt-optical transceiver.

Zoya Popovich, distinguished professor of electrical, computer & energy and chief science officer of LumenAstra also took home an LVC prize. Alongside CEO Jim Pollock, Popovich explained how her company is developing a wearable sensor capable of measuring temperature deep below the skin, such as in cancerous tumors and in the brain post injury or stroke. Current methods like catheters and needles are invasive, uncomfortable, and inaccurate, but LumenAstra's solution offers the opposite. It's small and non-invasive while providing constant, accurate measurements and detects critical, early-warning signs before additional damage can take place.

"If it were not for the personalized attention and advice from Venture Partners, I would have never met Jim or been encouraged to join him in commercializing the ideas developed in my lab," said Popovich. "The LVC funding means that the company and product we set out to develop is not only a fun adventure, but also an obligation to provide a useful product to future users."

To prepare for the showcase, finalists were encouraged to participate in Venture Partners' Commercialization Academy customer discovery programs, such as Starting Blocks and Research-to-Market. Many also attended "Elements of Entrepreneurship" workshops, a monthly series that teaches the basics of building a high-tech, university-based startup. In addition, CU �鶹ӰԺ Entrepreneurs in Residence (EIRs), commercialization mentors and Venture Partners staff provided critical feedback so finalists could refine their presentations and practice engaging different business audiences in order to attract funding.

In the spring and summer of 2021, all of the LVC awardees will complete the Research-to-Market program. In addition, toward the end of the funding period, awardees will present their progress from the LVC and collaborate with EIRs, mentors and Venture Partners staff to set the commercialization path forward.

LVC funding comes from the Colorado Office of Economic Development & International Trade’s (COEDIT) AIA program, Venture Partners at CU �鶹ӰԺ and the Chancellor’s Innovation Fund.

Lab Venture Challenge 2020 Award Winners

Biosciences:

Zoya Popovich (pitched with CEO Jim Pollock) ($125,000)— LumenAstra: Non-invasive Compact Internal Body Thermometer
Mark Rentschler ($125,000)— Endoculus: Disposable Robotic Endoscope for Deep Enteroscopy
Brian DeDecker ($125,000) — Gene-Lock: A Novel Approach to Gene Assembly
Jerome Fox ($125,000) — Think Bioscience: Using Microbes to Drug the Undruggable
Jacob Segil ($125,000) — HeapSi: Hip Arthroscopy Surgical Instruments for Improved Patient Outcomes and Reduced Surgical Time
Xiaoyun Ding ($50,000 from Chancellor's Innovation Fund) — Modern Shennong: Acousto Thermal Shift Assay for Fast and Label-free Protein Analysis
Robert McLeod (pitched with CEO Camilla Uzcategui) ($50,000 from Chancellor'ss Innovation Fund & recipient of $1,000 Audience Choice Award) — Vitro3D: Biomimetic 3D Printed Scaffolds for Drug Discovery

Physical Sciences & Engineering:

Michael Marshak ($125,000 & recipient of $1,000 Audience Choice Award) — OTORO Energy: High Performance Battery Materials for Affordable Grid Scale Energy Storage
Michael McGehee ($125,000) — TYNT: Dynamic Smart Windows
Scott Palo ($125,000) — Blue Cubed: Hybrid Small Satellite Radio Frequency and Optical Communication System
Wil Srubar (pitched with CEO Shane Frazier) ($125,000) — Minus Materials: Reducing the Carbon Footprint of Building Materials
Mahmoud Hussein ($125,000) — Resonant Inclusions: Efficient Thermoelectric Conversion

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Aerospace America: How CU �鶹ӰԺ continues cubesat work during the pandemic

Anonymous — Thu, 14 May 2020 20:53:29 +0000

Aerospace America: How CU �鶹ӰԺ continues cubesat work during the pandemic Anonymous (not verified) Thu, 05/14/2020 - 14:53

Now that he’s more than a month into online learning, Scott Palo is glad that he and his grad students put some thought into their strategy of “grabbing a bunch of stuff” before leaving campus.

For Palo’s students at the University of Colorado in �鶹ӰԺ, like those in other aerospace programs around the country, learning in recent years has come to mean more than attending classes in person, or now, online. Ideally, hands-on learning will continue during the coronavirus pandemic to a degree that is safe and practical, and that’s what is happening in �鶹ӰԺ.

Palo, an aerospace and engineering sciences professor at CU and chair of AIAA’s Small Satellite Technical Committee, spoke to me over the phone from his home. In his basement, he has hooked up a battery power supply, soldering tools and an oscilloscope — all liberated from his lab. The idea was to “have the tools of the testing” ready to continue trying out cubesat components and software either at home or by connecting to the lab remotely, he says.

Palo, it turns out, has not needed the soldering tools: As of our talk, he hadn’t broken anything yet. The oscilloscope has come in handy for testing electrical interfaces between subsystems on smallsat designs, but overall, hardware hasn’t been the focus.

“I’d say we’re in software and documentation mode,” he says.

Anticipating the closure, a student team worked in the lab for three days to set up a flatsat, or simulated, version of their upcoming U.S. Air Force-funded MAXWELL cubesat, short for Multiple Access X-band Wave Experiment Located in LEO. From their homes, Palo and his students access, via the internet, this networked array of electronics that are just like the ones planned for MAXWELL, which is now in the testing phase. This way, they can continue to upload software for testing. One of 18 small satellites selected by NASA to be deployed as secondary rocket payloads from 2021 to 2023, MAXWELL will demonstrate a radio design for smallsats.

The Air Force’s University Nanosatellite Program 9 is helping pay for development of MAXWELL. The spacecraft will be large by cubesat standards at 6 units long, meaning the volume of six 10-centimeter cubes joined together.

Unfortunately, Palo and his students had to stop assembling a different cubesat, the CU Earth Escape Explorer, CU-E³. It is one of 13 smallsats NASA plans to deploy during the Space Launch System rocket’s Artemis-1 mission, the design’s uncrewed inaugural flight targeted for 2021. Once in space, the Orion crew capsule and service module will separate from the rocket’s Interim Cryogenic Propulsion Stage, revealing the Orion stage adapter and its payload slots from which CU-E³and the other payloads will spring free.

CU-E³will test the same radio transmitter design as the one tested in LEO on MAXWELL, but this time from 4 million kilometers away after it flies past the moon.

Since the university closed its buildings, no one has been allowed in the labs.

Now, instead, the students have plenty of time to document test plans for hardware, for example, and this may be fortunate. Getting picked for the Artemis flight has taught the students a cold fact about working on a high-profile NASA mission: “A lot more reviews and processes,” Palo says. “A whole lot more paperwork.”

Palo is erring on the side of caution about what constitutes essential work that would require leaving home.

“We want to keep working — people want to be critical — but we don’t want to put any students at risk,” he says.

He’s also mindful that if he and his students were to go back to the lab, but others are not permitted to, that could be perceived as unfair.

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