Micro-g

OUR MISSION

Micro-g’s mission is to develop tools for NASA which will be used in a micro-gravity environment. The team submitted a tool design for the Micro-g Neutral Buoyancy Experiment Design Team (Micro-g NExT) challenge, executed by the Design & Manufacturing and Prototyping & Test Teams. The end goal is to generate new technology that will be used in future spaceflight missions, having a significant impact on the world of manned spaceflight.

MEET OUR TEAM

Project Lead: Ty Sandene

Faculty Advisor: Tomas Gonzalez-Torres

Technical Advisors: Tim Cullinan & Tomas Gonzalez-Torres

NASA Mentor: Jessica Tramaglini

Micro-g is structured into two different teams:

Diving Deeper...

Project Breakdown

Objectives

The objective of Micro-g is to brainstorm, test, and design micro-gravity tools to be used by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. For the remainder of the 2018-19 calendar year, the team hopes to submit the Test Equipment Data Package (TEDP), complete the Test Readiness Review (TRR), and test the EVA Camera Mount at NASA’s Micro-g NExT Design Challenge at the Johnston Space Center.

Scope

Micro-g designs and constructs tools for a micro-gravity environment to be used and tested in NASA facilities. Now that the EVA Camera Mount is accepted for the NASA Micro-g NExT Challenge, we will further develop our EVA tool to be reviewed and critiqued by NASA and our technical advisers. After successfully showing the capabilities of our tools in the TEDP, the team will head to Houston, Texas for our test campaigns with NASA. After the test campaigns, the team will document all lessons learned and new technologies developed to be forwarded to NASA.

Goals

– Short Term –

Submit the Test Equipment Data Package, Proof of Concept Video, and pass Micro-g NExT Design Challenge Test Readiness Review of the EVA Camera Mount. Through this NASA challenge, our team will brainstorm, design, and analyze a possible camera mount for the International Space Station
Hold youth outreach activities at Edwards, Fellows, and Meeker Elementary Schools. These outreach activities will promote STEM careers and the positive promotion of NASA’s mission.

– Long Term –

Design and Manufacture an EVA Camera Mount to be tested at the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory in Houston, Texas in May of 2019.
Have NASA accept and fly our EVA Camera Mount design in future missions/EVA walks.

Timeline

: Jeremy Hayhurst is a sophomore Aerospace Engineering student. He is hoping to intern with NASA or Boeing and work in research and development after graduating. When not studying, Jeremy spends his time running and enjoying the outdoors.

: Katerina Connelly is studying Aerospace Engineering with a chemistry minor. In her free time Katerina enjoys hanging out with her friends and hopes to have a career related to engineering after graduation.

: Ty Sandene is a Junior Aerospace Engineer at Iowa State University. He has design experience on Iowa State University’s Formula SAE team. In his free time, he enjoys mountain biking and hopes to have a future career in aerodynamic design.

: Daniel Partida is a Sophomore Aerospace Engineering student. He hopes to gain internship experience at Boeing or Rockwell Collins this upcoming summer. In his free time, Daniel enjoys hiking and spending time on the water with friends, and he hopes to have a career related to Aerodynamics and aircraft design after graduation.

: Jacob Thompson is a Junior Aerospace Engineering student. His love and drive for aerospace engineering comes from long hours journeying through the world of Kerbal Space Program. While sometimes a game is booted up, Jacob prefers to continue learning and experimenting with personal science projects or spending time with his fiancee and friends. Post graduation, Jacob hopes to find his niche within the astronautical industry.

: Tyler Hoppe is a Sophomore Aerospace Engineering student with a minor in Non-Destructive Engineering. He has a background in mathematics and physics. In his free time, Tyler enjoys to be at the lake and he hopes to have a career in Non-Destructive Evaluation for an Aerospace company.

: James La Porta is a Sophomore in Aerospace Engineering at Iowa State UNiversity with a minor in Spanish and Mathematics. He is currently seeking an industry internship. In his free time, James enjoys building small projects on his own and he hopes to have a career related to rocket propulsion after graduation.

: Bryce Miles is a Junior in aerospace engineering. He enjoys going to the gym and participating in events with his fraternity, TKE. He hopes to work on Mars related missions after graduation.

: Dakota Fouts is a Sophomore Aerospace Engineering student at Iowa State. Last year he was involved in his house’s Cabinet as Student Wellness Chair, as well as multiple clubs and extracurriculars. In his free time, he enjoys running and otherwise staying active, and hopes to pursue a career in the aerospace field after graduating.

: Justin Stein in a Sophomore Aerospace Engineering Student. In his free time, he enjoys experimenting with various flight sims. After graduation, Justin aspires to have a career in aircraft design, or possibly become a test pilot.

: Trevor Lyon is a Junior Aerospace Engineering student. He has had M:2:I experience dealing with control systems. Trevor enjoys going to Iowa State football and basketball games, and he hopes to find a career related to aerodynamics after graduation.