History
Version 9 (J. Simmons, 07/18/2016 10:16 pm) → Version 10/24 (J. Simmons, 07/18/2016 10:27 pm)
h1. History
{{>toc}}
!>/attachments/download/591!
The Ground Sphere projects have a rich history at Mach 30, starting with a question from Mach 30 contributor Aaron Harper leading all the way to the current generation Ground Sphere intended for receiving signals from the International Space Station.
h2. Mk 1
h3. The Inspiration
The first Ground Sphere project did not go by the name Ground Sphere, it was simply referred to as "GS-001":https://opendesignengine.net/projects/gs-001/. GS-001 wasn't even a formal Mach 30 project. Instead it was the physical answer to a question posed by Mach 30 volunteer Aaron Harper, _"How low can we get the cost down to and reliably receive radio signals from space?"_
Like all good makers, Aaron sought to answer the question quite practically, by building one with the goals of low cost and simple operations. As you will see, the success of this early work had a profound impact on Mach 30 and influenced future project development. Today we refer to GS-001 as Ground Sphere Mk 1 due to its relationship to the first project to bear the name Ground Sphere.
h3. Revision 1
_January 2013 - April 2013_
first GS project started on ODE to demo at 2013 Yuri's night - include video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbODjHt-BSg
<Aaron's story of the first build (everything soldered together>. Why he chose the design he did, putting it together, and testing it>
<"Aaron's story of asking the question that led to the first GS":http://mach30.org/2013/05/16/ground-station-part-1/>
h3. Revision 2
_May 2013 - July 2013_
<Aaron's story of the second build (screw terminals for the aerials, so we could ship it, a design decision that is still with us today). J's story of "taking it to New Space 2013":http://mach30.org/2013/08/03/new-space-2013-wrap-up/>
h2. Mk 2
<insert continued story (with photos and link to project) of the SkyCube GS>
h3. Companion to SkyCube... Ground Sphere of Course
_September 2013 - December 2013_
<discussion of "updated requirements":https://opendesignengine.net/projects/groundsphere/wiki/Requirements_Document (focus on top level), new dimensions>
h3. Building Mk 2
_January 2014 - May 2014_
<discuss new build (use lots of pics, including from "this blog post":http://mach30.org/2014/06/03/testing-for-catastrophic-capacitor-failure/ >
h3. Testing and SkyCube
_June 2014 - September 2014_
<discuss "test procedure":https://opendesignengine.net/projects/groundsphere/wiki/Testing ("especially tests for signal reception":https://opendesignengine.net/projects/groundsphere/wiki/Test_112_Instructions). close with info from "SkyCube updates":https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/880837561/skycube-the-first-satellite-launched-by-you/posts/985395>
Project put on the shelf
h2. Mk 3
h3. Mach 30 Happy Hours - Taking Ground Sphere Back Off the Shelf
_October 2015 - December 2015_
summarize happy hours
h3. Mach 30 IPT Development of Ground Sphere Mk 3
_January 2016 - Present_
<insert story and goal of Mk 3 (with logo), happy hour, Perigee, etc>
{{>toc}}
!>/attachments/download/591!
The Ground Sphere projects have a rich history at Mach 30, starting with a question from Mach 30 contributor Aaron Harper leading all the way to the current generation Ground Sphere intended for receiving signals from the International Space Station.
h2. Mk 1
h3. The Inspiration
The first Ground Sphere project did not go by the name Ground Sphere, it was simply referred to as "GS-001":https://opendesignengine.net/projects/gs-001/. GS-001 wasn't even a formal Mach 30 project. Instead it was the physical answer to a question posed by Mach 30 volunteer Aaron Harper, _"How low can we get the cost down to and reliably receive radio signals from space?"_
Like all good makers, Aaron sought to answer the question quite practically, by building one with the goals of low cost and simple operations. As you will see, the success of this early work had a profound impact on Mach 30 and influenced future project development. Today we refer to GS-001 as Ground Sphere Mk 1 due to its relationship to the first project to bear the name Ground Sphere.
h3. Revision 1
_January 2013 - April 2013_
first GS project started on ODE to demo at 2013 Yuri's night - include video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbODjHt-BSg
<Aaron's story of the first build (everything soldered together>. Why he chose the design he did, putting it together, and testing it>
<"Aaron's story of asking the question that led to the first GS":http://mach30.org/2013/05/16/ground-station-part-1/>
h3. Revision 2
_May 2013 - July 2013_
<Aaron's story of the second build (screw terminals for the aerials, so we could ship it, a design decision that is still with us today). J's story of "taking it to New Space 2013":http://mach30.org/2013/08/03/new-space-2013-wrap-up/>
h2. Mk 2
<insert continued story (with photos and link to project) of the SkyCube GS>
h3. Companion to SkyCube... Ground Sphere of Course
_September 2013 - December 2013_
<discussion of "updated requirements":https://opendesignengine.net/projects/groundsphere/wiki/Requirements_Document (focus on top level), new dimensions>
h3. Building Mk 2
_January 2014 - May 2014_
<discuss new build (use lots of pics, including from "this blog post":http://mach30.org/2014/06/03/testing-for-catastrophic-capacitor-failure/ >
h3. Testing and SkyCube
_June 2014 - September 2014_
<discuss "test procedure":https://opendesignengine.net/projects/groundsphere/wiki/Testing ("especially tests for signal reception":https://opendesignengine.net/projects/groundsphere/wiki/Test_112_Instructions). close with info from "SkyCube updates":https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/880837561/skycube-the-first-satellite-launched-by-you/posts/985395>
Project put on the shelf
h2. Mk 3
h3. Mach 30 Happy Hours - Taking Ground Sphere Back Off the Shelf
_October 2015 - December 2015_
summarize happy hours
h3. Mach 30 IPT Development of Ground Sphere Mk 3
_January 2016 - Present_
<insert story and goal of Mk 3 (with logo), happy hour, Perigee, etc>